San Diego rallies, holds off Browns
By MIKE McLAIN Tribune ChronicleArticle Photos
CLEVELAND - The Browns did something they hadn't accomplished since November of 2007 score a touchdown on their opening possession.
After that Kodak moment, there was no need to take the camera out of the bag until a late rally that came up short.
The best snap shots of the game were of the San Diego Chargers, who recovered from a slow start to win their seventh straight game, 30-23, here Sunday before 67,978 at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Browns coach Eric Mangini looked for positives in the closeness of the score, but the bottom line is that the Browns are 1-11 and a loser of seven straight games.
"We kept fighting through whatever adversity there was and putting ourselves in a position if we had gotten the onside kick at the end we would have had a chance to tie the game," Mangini said. "A lot of guys had to step in at totally different positions, and some guys had a chance to get their first NFL opportunity. If a few things had gone differently, it could have been a different (result)."
Browns quarterback Brady Quinn was sharp on the opening drive, which covered 72 yards on 10 plays. He was six-of six for 61 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Mohamed Massaquoi.
That's when the fun ended for the Browns. The Chargers responded with a 55-yard drive that ended with a 32-yard field goal by Nate Kaeding.
San Diego struck quickly on its next possession when quarterback Philip Rivers, who was 18-of-25 for 373 yards, tossed a pass to fullback Mike Tolbert in the left flat. Tolbert took off along the sideline and scored on a 66-yard play as the Chargers took the lead for good at 10-7.
Quinn's fast start fizzled into another poor overall offensive showing through three quarters. He finished with decent numbers - 25-of-45 for 271 yards and three touchdowns but the lack of consistency proved costly.
Quinn was no match for Rivers, who had a field day throwing to tight end Antonio Gates. Gates, who played at Kent State University, had eight receptions for a career-high 167 yards. There were times when Rivers simply put the ball up for grabs, allowing Gates to pull it down while being covered closely.
"Collectively, we came out and wanted to play San Diego Chargers football," Gates said. "The offensive line did a great job. I was presented with a chance to make some great plays. I was able to come up with some big plays."
Nothing the Browns tried defensively slowed down Gates. There were times when they doubled up in coverage - one high and one low - and he was able to pull down the ball between defenders.
"Some of those catches were unbelievable," Mangini said. "We had him high-low doubled, we had him locked with man and zone coverage all around him, and we had guys hit him at the line of scrimmage. He's amazing. It's hard to draw something up where we could put more people on him."
Defensive back Mike Adams had an up-close look at Gates. He marveled at what Gates was able to accomplish.
"He was their go-to guy on third down, and he converted almost all of them," Adams said. "We should have done a better job covering him when we had the chance. Everything fell his way, as usual. He's definitely a Pro Bowl player."
The game turned into a replay of most of the previous 11 games for the Browns. The offense struggled most of the time. The defense had its moments in the early stages, but there were too many breakdowns that made life easy for the Chargers offense.
Rivers took advantage of breakdowns in coverage. Two screen passes one to Tolbert and a 31-yard play to Darren Sproles - resulted in touchdowns. The defense was in a zone blitz both times, but the underneath coverage didn't get enough width to stop the plays at the sideline.
The turning point occurred late in the second quarter with the Chargers leading, 10-7. The Browns had a first down at the Chargers' 3. Jerome Harrison was stopped for a loss of 2 yards on first down after trying to bounce an inside run to the outside. Quinn then threw an incompletion. On third down he had the ball stripped from his grasp by linebacker Shaun Phillips, and Phillips recovered at the San Diego 13.
"I was just trying to make a play, when it comes down to it," Quinn said. "Looking at it now, it didn't make a difference in the game. Being down there and not scoring any points is tough."
Whatever momentum the Browns had on the drive was gone after the missed opportunity. The Chargers closed the second quarter with a 42-yard field goal by Kaeding to take a 13-7 lead.
It was all Chargers in the third quarter as they scored on the pass to Sproles and a 4-yard run by LaDainian Tomlinson. Gates had four receptions for 114 yards in the quarter.
The Browns made it interesting when Harrison scored on an 8-yard pass from Quinn in the fourth period. Kaeding kicked a 22-yard field goal, but Quinn hooked up again with Harrison on a shovel pass from 8 yards out. A two-point conversion attempt failed.
Blake Costanzo recovered an onside kick at the Browns' 41. Phil Dawson kicked a 49-yard field goal with 39 seconds remaining in the game, but another onside kick was scooped up by Tomlinson.
The Browns host the Pittsburgh Steelers Thursday.
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ClevelandDrones
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12-08-09 9:55 AM
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No it didn't. (-:
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fairness
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12-07-09 7:36 AM
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Anyone notice the blunder by the officials again. When Quinn fumbled and the Chargers recover by the sidelines, the ball went out of bounds and a Charger played pushed it back in to another player. Should have still been Cleveland's ball and could have kicked a field goal.
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