Cleveland Browns: Grinding on defense, running the ball, and booing the QB

The defense stepped up when it mattered in the fourth quarter, stopping the Buccaneers on their final drive. The run game was still a mess – just 1.9 yards per carry – but quarterback Deshaun Watson made up for it by not being a complete disaster, which has to be labeled as a positive.

Speaking of Watson, he made good use of his playmakers, as 16 of his 24 completions went to Denzel Boston, Harold Fannin Jr. , and KC Concepcion. That is a solid plan for a quarterback who, to use a once-unpopular phrase for a Cleveland quarterback, clearly has "diminishing skills" since arriving in town.

Cleveland opens the home portion of its schedule on Sunday when they host the Carolina Panthers , who come to town with a surprisingly effective offense that is averaging 35.5 points a game with quarterback Bryce Young running the show.