By John Wawrow
Associated Press
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. ó Turns out the Cleveland Browns aren’t quitters after all. And they have Phil Dawson to thank for this wild win.
Dawson capped a five field-goal outing by hitting a career-long 56-yarder with 1:39 remaining to secure the Browns’ 29-27 win over the reeling Buffalo Bills on Monday night.
Cleveland (4-6) snapped a two-game skid and avoided wasting a 13-point lead for a third straight time. The Bills (5-5) had a chance to win with a clutch kick of their own, but Rian Lindell missed a 47-yard attempt with 38 seconds left.
“We got tired of what happened the previous two weeks, getting a lead and losing it in the fourth quarter,” receiver Braylon Edwards said. “As a team, we rallied. We came together when we were supposed to.”Buffalo has lost four straight and five of six, looking nothing like the team that got off to a 4-0 start. Trent Edwards endured another sloppy performance, tossing three interceptions in Buffalo’s first four possessions.
Edwards’ 1-yard sneak gave the Bills a 27-26 lead with 2:35 left in the fourth, but Cleveland responded with a six-play, 28-yard drive that stalled on the Bills 39 when Braylon Edwards couldn’t hold on to Brady Quinn’s pass at the right sideline.
Without hesitation, Browns coach Romeo Crennel sent out Dawson, who calmly got off an easy kick that started toward the right goal post before curling in to split the uprights.
“On the spur of the moment, you’ve got to be confident,” Dawson said. “So as soon as we threw the incomplete pass on third down, I was ready to go. I gave Romeo a nod, and he had the confidence to send me out there.”
Quinn earned his first win in his second start. He went 14 of 36 for 185 yards.