Cover 4: The Broncos overcome the Browns, winning 29–12 to record their fifth straight victory.
DENVER — The Broncos are unstoppably successful.
The Broncos took an early 14-0 lead and never looked back in their eventual 29-12 victory over another wild-card contender in a crucial AFC encounter against the Cleveland Browns.
Against the strongest defence in the NFL, Denver amassed a season-high 169 running yards, while the Broncos defence limited Cleveland to just two out of thirteen third-down attempts.
The Broncos answered with a protracted scoring drive to extend Denver’s lead to five points, even though Cleveland would mount a comeback midway through the game with three straight scoring drives to narrow the score to 14-12. Following Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s removal from the game due to a roughing the passer call against Baron Browning, defensive tackle D.J. Jones recovered a fumble that set up a game-winning touchdown.
The Broncos’ victory has extended their winning streak to their longest since 2015, and they are now making an unlikely push for the postseason.
The Broncos’ victory over the Cleveland Browns in Week 12 was largely due to these players and plays.
The fine imposed on Browning felt substantial. After a field goal drive of their own, the Broncos had just answered a touchdown drive by Cleveland, but as Cleveland regained possession late in the third quarter, their lead was only five points. Browning struck Thompson-Robinson when he released the ball after he spent a considerable amount of time scrambling around in the backfield on third-and-12. It looked at first like the Broncos had forced a three-and-out to regain control of the ball. Rather, a late flag was thrown by the officiating staff, giving Cleveland a new set of downs at their 38-yard line.
The Broncos turned the tide of the game two plays later when, on second-and-7 at the Cleveland 41-yard line, they ran a jet sweep and then pitched the ball back for an attempt at a reverse. However, running back Pierre Strong Jr. was unable to haul the pitch in, and the ball fell to the ground. Jones recovered and returned the fumble to the 20-yard line, and four plays later, the Broncos gave themselves some breathing room. Prior to this Week 12 matchup, the Browns had allowed opponents to avera
