Ever since the late 2014 NFL Draft, where in May the Cleveland Browns had drafted Johnny Manziel, the hype around the Browns has been around their quarterback situation. Last season, he lost the starting job to Brian Hoyer. This year, it seems quite possible that he could once again lose the starting job to a free agent, only this time it would be Josh McCown.

Josh McCown has had a less than stellar preseason so far, but still has not been ruled out to the the starter along Lake Erie. But on August 30, Josh McCown looked great. But first things first, let's look closer at the game.

Jameis Winston threw an incompletion and went down for a sack split between Desmond Bryant and Paul Kruger. On the ensuing punt, Travis Benjamin got the scoring going quickly as he took it back 53 yards for a punt return touchdown and a quick 7-0 lead for the Browns. On the next Tampa Bay Buccaneers possession, they went three and out again as rookie offensive lineman Ali Marpet was called for a crippling holding penalty and they couldn't make up for those yards.

That was when Josh McCown started to shine, as he led the team down the field on a 16 play, 80 yard drive that resulted in a touchdown pass to Brian Hartline. The main job of the quarterback is to make sure they get first downs and keep moving the ball down the field. Then of course scoring touchdowns is a big plus too. McCown was effective and was able to get the job done on this drive, which is impressive as they would end up seeing him complete seventeen of his twenty-three attempts for a total of 117 yards and two touchdowns.

Now the quarterback battle is going to get tougher, because Johnny Manziel is expected to sit for the remainder of the preseason because he has a tired arm. McCown has been given another opportunity to shine and with how he played tonight that is momentum that Head Coach Mike Pettine may decide that he does not want to stop.

After the touchdown Winston threw an interception that led to a Carey Spear field goal to extend the Browns lead to 17-0. Before the half was over Doug Martin would score the only touchdown that the Bucs would have in this contest.

There would be two remaining touchdowns in this contest. As Josh McCown would connect for his second touchdown of the game to the tight end Gary Barnidge. Third string quarterback Thad Lewis would rush for the final touchdown of the game later in the third quarter as they would win the game running away as they win by a total of 31-7.

The bright spots of the game for the Cleveland Browns are the previously mentioned Josh McCown and also Travis Benjamin. Benjamin was great with the punt return touchdown and also had four catches for thirty-nine yards. The bad thing for them is that their third down percentage was at 46%. They were only able to convert seven of fifteen. That is a number they need to improve on or they will primarily be relying on their defense.

The bright spot of the game for the Buccaneers was that Doug Martin was looking good behind their offensive line. His best play was the 19 yard touchdown run, but he finished with nine carries for forty yards and his touchdown. The ugly spot in the game is that both Patrick Murray and Connor Barth were poor as they both missed field goal attempts. Barth missed a 43 yarder wide right in the second quarter which stifled their momentum as it would have cut the lead to seven. Murray was just as long with a 44 yarder that went wide left. Special Teams may be underrated, but they are important as they need to come up with big plays at the right times.

The Cleveland Browns move to 1-2 on the preseason as they have finally gotten a victory. They finish up on Thursday, September 3rd as they travel to Soldier Field to take on the Chicago Bears. Meanwhile the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fall to 1-2 as well, and they will stay in state as they travel to Sun Life Stadium to face the Miami Dolphins on September 3rd as well.

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About the author
Caleb Wahlgren
I will not deny that I am a big fan of the Green Bay Packers. But I love the NFL and want to see the very best for it.