Editor: Joe Bryant. Game Recap Contributors: Mike Anderson, Michael Brown, Chris Burtt, J.D. Caldwell, David Dodds, Bobby Elder, Jim Enochs, Joel Faulhaber, Michael Flynn, Kevin Goldblum, Clayton Gray, Bob Harris, Fred Hebert, Jesse Hilsenrad, Drew Kendall, Jeff Lewis, Joey Matusek, Justin Oliver, Steve Prosapio, David Shick, Cody Smith, Scott Smith, Jeffrey Stout. Cleveland 3 at Tampa Bay 17 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Cleveland Browns: QB Tim Couch was hassled all day, and didn't have time to make his reads. He couldn't move the Cleveland offense at all against the tough Buccaneer defense. Though Couch was not effective, he didn't appear to show any effects of his concussion from last week. Give the Tampa Bay defense most the credit for Couch's troubles on the day. RB Jamel White started. But he and William Green split the workload with White running nine times and Green rushing eight times. Neither running back looked good running behind the Cleveland offensive line and against the Buc's dominant defense. The Browns wide receivers were not a major factor in the game as Couch didn't have time to throw. Dennis Northcutt finished the game with the most yardage out of the slot position, but Jamel White had the most receptions by far as the outlet receiver. The Browns looked like they will continue to spread the ball around to all four of their wide receivers which is bad news for Fantasy Owners. For the Browns defense, it was a tale of two halves. The rush defense played well in the first half allowing only 41 yards rushing, but were simply run over by Mike Alstott in the second half after being on the field all day. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The story of this game was the Tampa Bay defense. The Buccaneers defense dominated the first half and held Cleveland to under 100 yards in the half. The second half was more of the same, and they only allowed three points on the day. The Buccaneer running game was terrific with Michael Pittman but surprisingly, Mike Alstott was a big factor too.. Though they started slow in the first half, they Browns defense wore down, and Alstott took advantage in the second half. Pittman was very active running and catching the ball and finished with 148 total yards. In the second half, Alstott scored a touchdown after gaining all 55 yards on the drive and never looked back. Brad Johnson didn't play very well in the first half of this game, but was more accurate and efficient in the second half. The Tampa running game was so effective that Johnson didn't need to do very much. Martin Gramatica had a field goal blocked and also missed a 34-yarder in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Buccaneers blew another short field goal opportunity with a bad snap. Gramatica finished the day going only 1 for 3. WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW Cleveland Browns QB: Tim Couch had his first pass dropped by Shea, but threw a bullet on the next pass for a first down on 3rd and long. Couch's interception in the first half came on a forced pass that was tipped and then intercepted. Couch was harassed all day by the Tampa front four and simply did not have time to make his reads. Though he was not effective, he didn't appear to show any effects of his concussion from last week. Give the Buccaneer defense plenty of credit for Couch's poor stats. WR: Kevin Johnson is no longer the primary receiving option for the Browns as they definitely spread the ball around. He was targeted on a long throw in the end zone, but was well covered by two Tampa defenders. He caught his first pass in the fourth quarter. Buccaneer CB Dwight Smith absolutely popped Kevin Johnson in the fourth quarter with a vicious hit, but Johnson was fine. He took another big hit from Derrick Brooks the next series. Quincy Morgan ran a reverse during the first quarter but was smothered by the quick Tampa defense. He only connected on two receptions. Andre Davis didn't have too many balls thrown his way and only had one catch for 4 yards. Dennis Northcutt caught the first two Browns' receptions as the slot receiver. He dropped a long ball in the fourth quarter that appeared to be catchable. He finished with 74 yards leading all Browns' receivers. RB: Jamel White started the game and ran the ball on the first play of the game. He had a ten-yard pass reception negated by a defensive penalty that gave the Browns a first down. In the first half, White had only five carries to Green's six carries. The second half didn't open much up for White either, but he did have one nice run for 15 yards. White finished with only 8 carries. William Green came in during the first series on second and long, but gave way to White on 3rd and long. Green ran 3 of the first 4 running plays. Green switched field direction on one run and gained six yards on the play. It was his best run of the day. The Browns rushing game is nowhere to be found, but blame the offensive line as much as the running backs. Green finished with 8 carries. TE: Mark Campbell didn't have a catch in the game and dropped one in the fourth quarter. He was also targeted once down the middle of the field in the third quarter but wasn't really open. Aaron Shea dropped a ball early in the game that he should have caught. Neither Campbell nor Shea factored into the Browns' game plan in a meaningful way. K: Phil Dawson hit a 51-yarder in the fourth quarter for the Browns only score. The kick would have been good from another five yards at least. Browns Pass Defense: The Browns defensive line played well early and got some pressure on Johnson even though they didn't record any sacks. In the second half, they didn't get much pressure. DE Kenard Lang limped off the field with a sprained ankle but did return to the game. CB Daylon McCutcheon left the field in the second half with a sprained elbow. Browns Rush Defense: The Browns rush defense was tough in the first half, holding the Buccaneers to only 41 yards rushing. In the second half, the defense seemed to tire and started to allow Pittman some room. When Alstott came in the game, he simply ran all over the Browns defense after they were on the field all day. Simply put, they tired out completely. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB: Brad Johnson started slow in the first half. He missed McCardell on a touchdown pass and later threw an interception on the series. Keyshawn Johnson bobbled the pass when he was hit leading to the pick, so the QB wasn't to blame. Johnson made a couple of throws in the second half that could have been intercepted. For the first half, Johnson only had 60 yards passing outside of Pittman's long 64 yard gain which was all Pittman running after the catch. In the second half, he was more accurate and efficient as the Browns defense began to wear down. He wasn't asked to do much because of the conservative play calling in the game. Johnson took two intentional grounding calls in the game. WR: Keyshawn Johnson bobbled a ball in the Browns' red zone that resulted in an interception. Johnson finally got his first catch during the two-minute offense in the first half. He was more involved in the game in the second half and was Johnson's first option. He finished with 64 yards and the conservative play calling hurt his numbers. Keenan McCardell was open in the end zone on a seam route, but Johnson missed him for the touchdown. He didn't have a catch in the first half, largely due to Johnson's ineffectiveness. He finished the game with only one catch. Joe Jurevicius didn't have a catch on the day and was not involved in the game plan. RB: Michael Pittman gained six yards on his first run from scrimmage and looked strong up the middle. On the next play, Pittman made a Brown defender miss on a one-yard throw and took it 64 yards, brought down on the five-yard line. Pittman stayed in the game in the late second quarter inside the Browns' 20-yard line. Pittman was a major factor in the game, rushing and receiving. He made a terrific one-handed grab and ran with authority after his catches. Mike Alstott came in the game in the red zone and got two straight carries until he scored on the first possession. He did not run the ball often in the first half, but had a big series in the third quarter where he ran all five plays on the series for 55 yards and a touchdown. He was the primary runner for the remainder of the game and looked great breaking all sorts of tackles. He finished the game with 126 yards and two touchdowns after only two carries in the first half. Aaron Stecker also played occasionally and had a few carries in the game. TE: Ken Dilger lined up wide at one point and was often in motion. Ricky Dudley finished with one catch and did not receive many looks. K: Martin Gramatica had a field goal blocked in the third quarter, and almost took a penalty for kicking the ball out of bounds on the play. He also missed a 34-yarder in the third quarter. Tampa Bay also blew another opportunity for a field goal with a bad snap. Gramatica finished the day going 1 for 3. Buccaneers Pass Defense: The Tampa Bay defensive line was again a force in this game and put pressure on Couch all day. Ronde Barber's interception was off a tipped pass on great coverage. It was really a team interception: great pass rush, great coverage, and great field presence by Barber to make the pick. Barber is all over the field on defense and special teams. Barber made a key block to spring a long punt return and made a tackle on kickoff coverage at the 15 yard line. He finished with five tackles and an interception. Warren Sapp played another great game and disrupted the Browns' offense even when he was not involved in the tackle. He was in Couch's face all day. The front four on this team is very good. Buccaneers Rush Defense: The Buccaneers' speed on defense made it difficult for the Browns to run the ball with any success. In the first half, they held Cleveland to 31 yards rushing. They shut the Browns down all day and dominated the line of scrimmage.