Sep
16
Written by:
LarryMac
9/16/2009 2:02 PM
Minnesota opened the season by trying to get sneaky against the Browns with an onside kick to start the game. The Browns recovered, though, and did what they do best - converted good starting field position into a field goal.
The Vikings capitalized on a bad punt by Dave Zastudil to set up a tying field goal and a 36 yard kick return by Darius Reynaud to set up a touchdown drive that put them on top 10-3.
Brady Quinn then appeared to connect with Braylon Edwards for a spectacular 34 yard touchdown strike. The Vikings challenged, saying that Edwards had stepped out of bounds before making the catch. After lengthy review and debate the officials determined that Edwards had stepped out and failed to reestablish himself in the field of play before making the catch, but that he was forced out as the result of defensive pass interference, giving the Browns first and goal at the six yard line. Three plays later, they cashed it in for another field goal. Late in the half, Joshua Cribbs returned a punt 67 yards for the Browns first touchdown of the season, giving the team a 13-10 lead at the break.
After receiving IV fluids at halftime Adrian Peterson - who had been held to 25 yards and a 1-yard touchdown in the first half - erupted for 155 yards and two more touchdowns, breaking the Browns' back with a 64 yard dash that included no less than four broken tackles. Along the way, Brett Favre hit Percy Harvin for Harvin's first career touchdown and Favre's first as a Viking. Minnesota added another field goal and built a 34-13 lead before Brady Quinn found Robert Royal for the first touchdown by the Browns offense since last November.
The Browns defense played a strong first half and it's hard to fault a team for failing to contain Adrian Peterson. The team really seemed to drop off in the second half, though, getting away from a first half approach that saw them flying to the ball and tackling well in the open field. Offensively, the team continued to show nothing. Quinn was unable to stretch the field (despite over 200 yards passing, he averaged only 5.9 yards per attempt), was intercepted once, sacked five times and fumbled the ball when it fell out of his hand as he tried to throw and spent too long standing in the pocket. With only one real playmaker on offense (Edwards), Quinn only managed to get him the ball once (other than the reversed touchdown), with tight ends and running backs accounting for 13 of his 21 completions.
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