Browns Steal Back Momentum As Colts See Three-Game Win Streak Snapped

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Okereke would step in front of Mayfield's pass attempt to tight end Austin Hooper on the Browns' next drive, and 10 plays later, Blankenship would connect from 37 yards out to cut the Cleveland lead to seven, 27-20.


The Indy defense would force a Browns punt on their next drive, giving the Colts a shot to, at best, tie the game up early in the fourth quarter. But Nyheim Hines would fair catch that Browns punt at his own 4-yard line, and then Rivers, feeling the pressure from Garrett and others, would be called for intentional grounding in the end zone, resulting in a safety.


The Browns led 29-20 at that point, and both offenses would struggle to find the end zone the rest of the way; both Rivers and Mayfield threw their second picks of the day, and one more field goal by each side would secure a nine-point Cleveland win.


The Colts (3-2) had 308 yards of total offense on the day. Rivers completed 21-of-33 passes for 243 yards with two touchdowns, while Taylor led the way on the ground for Indianapolis with 12 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown. Hilton had a team-best six receptions for 69 yards.


The Colts at times struggled to convert third downs, finishing 4-of-11 (36 percent) in that area, and also turned just 1-of-4 red zone trips into touchdowns.


Okereke and Anthony Walker led the way for the Colts' defense, each finishing with an interception and a combined 13 tackles playing without All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard, who missed Sunday's game with a groin injury. Al-Quadin Muhammad finished with three tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.


The Browns (4-1), whose win streak extends to four games, tallied 385 yards of total offense on the day, as they controlled the time of possession battle (34:45 to just 25:15 for the Colts) and converted 10-of-17 (59 percent) third-down opportunities. Mayfield completed 21-of-37 passes for 247 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, while Jarvis Landry led the way with four receptions for 88 yards.


Garrett, as expected, was a menace off the edge for the Cleveland defense, finishing with four tackles (one for a loss), one sack, four quarterback hits and forcing that aforementioned safety.


The Colts will look to get back on track next Sunday, as they play host to the Cincinnati Bengals at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Bengals lost to the Baltimore Ravens 27-3 today to fall to 1-3-1 on the year.


"I still have a lot of confidence in this team," Reich said. "This is one game. Difficult when you work as hard as we do you are as close as we are and you believe that you are going places like we do. To come on the road and lose this game, it hurts. We will just put it back together and get things going next week."