KANSAS CITY, Mo.: The Browns rallied and had a chance to stun the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium, but they ran out of time and lost 17-13.
On fourth-and-10 at the Chiefs’ 32 with 15 seconds left, quarterback Johnny Manziel completed a 14-yard pass to undrafted rookie wide receiver Darius Jennings.
But the Browns (3-12) had no timeouts left and didn’t get a snap off before time expired on first-and-10 from the 18. The Chiefs (10-5) extended their winning streak to nine games and clinched a playoff berth.
The Browns trailed 17-3 at halftime, but they ran wild to start the second half and narrowed the Chiefs’ lead to 17-10 after running back Isaiah Crowell sprinted around the right side for a 10-yard touchdown with 9:15 left in the third quarter. Manziel sparked the nine-play, 82-yard drive by running for 34 yards on the first play, and he later added a 9-yard run. Rookie running back Duke Johnson picked up 8 yards during another key play on third-and-6 at the Chiefs’ 33.
Rookie outside linebacker Nate Orchard sacked quarterback Alex Smith on third-and-6 at the Browns’ 44 to force the Chiefs to punt during the ensuing series.
The Browns took over at their 20 and generated 21-play, 62-yard scoring drive, which lasted 12 minutes, 1 second. Travis Coons finished the long series with a 36-yard field goal to cut the Chiefs’ lead to 17-13 with 8:26 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Manziel ran for three first downs during the march, which included him bolting for 3 yards on fourth-and-2 at the Chiefs’ 10. On second-and-goal from the 8, the Chiefs pressured him, and he was penalized for intentional grounding. On third-and-goal from the 18, he threw an incomplete pass behind tight end Gary Barnidge. So the Browns resorted to Coons’ kick.
Earlier during the series, the Browns faked a punt on fourth-and-8 at their own 22. Backup safety Jordan Poyer extended the drive with a 10-yard run for a first down.
The Browns’ defense got a stop on the next series. On third-and-1 at the Chiefs’ 23, nose tackle Jamie Meder tackled running back Charcandrick West for no gain. The Chiefs challenged the spot, but the ruling on the field stood after a replay review.
The Browns took control at their own 42 with 5:35 remaining after the Chiefs punted.
The Browns advanced to the Chiefs’ 31. On third-and-8, Manziel threw behind Barnidge and incomplete. On fourth-and-8, Manziel’s pass fell incomplete in the right corner of the end zone with no receiver near it, a sign of miscommunication by the offense.
The Chiefs, though, failed to bury the Browns on the next possession. On third-and-5 at their 35, tight end Travis Kelce was swarmed by defenders and stuffed for no gain on a screen pass.
Following a punt, the Browns got the ball back at their 30 with 1:52 remaining, no timeouts left and a chance for an upset. But they couldn’t pull it off.
Manziel completed 13-of-32 passes for 136 yards with one interception and a rating of 40.6. He also had 11 carries for 108 yards.
The Chiefs seized command out of the gate with an 11-play, 65-yard scoring drive, which took 7 minutes, 8 seconds off the clock. Smith threaded the needle through a crowd of Browns defenders, free safety Tashaun Gipson, strong safety Donte Whitner and inside linebacker Karlos Dansby, with an 11-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jeremy Maclin on a slant route to the back of the end zone. The allowed the Chiefs to capture a 7-0 lead with 7:52 left in the opening quarter.
The Browns failed to immediately fire back, going three-and-out as Manziel got off to a rough start. On second-and-5 at Cleveland’s 13, Manziel overthrew Barnidge, who was wide open near about 20 yards downfield. Then on third-and-5, free safety Eric Berry nearly intercepted Manziel’s incomplete pass over the middle intended for rookie running back Duke Johnson.
After Andy Lee punted to the Kansas City’s 40, the Chiefs produced a nine-play, 39-yard drive finished by Cairo Santos making a 40-yard field goal to put the Browns in a 10-0 hole with 2:19 left in the first quarter. The Chiefs faced fourth-and-4 at the Browns’ 32 but converted when Smith scrambled up the middle for a 9-yard gain. Four plays later, Santos kicked his first field goal.
The Browns trimmed their deficit to 10-3 as Coons made a 47-yard field goal with 8:58 remaining in the second quarter. They had an 11-yard gain called back during the previous play because the Chiefs won a challenge. On third-and-4 at the Chiefs’ 23, Manziel ran and attempted a lateral to Johnson, who advanced to the 12. But following a replay review, the officials determined Manziel made an illegal forward pass. As a result, the Browns lost 5 yards and summoned Coons.
Smith threw an interception during the next series, and Manziel did the same two plays later. Orchard intercepted a Smith pass after he and inside linebacker Craig Robertson bobbled the ball between each other as if they were playing hot potato. Chiefs rookie cornerback Marcus Peters got his eighth interception of the season by picking off Manziel’s pass intended for Barnidge.
Neither team scored off those turnovers.
The Browns got the ball back with 2:05 left in the second quarter and went three-and-out. The Chiefs took control at their 44 with 1:34 left, and on first down, Smith ran for 29 yards after he shrugged off outside linebacker Barkevious Mingo on an attempted sack. Four plays later, Smith connected with Kelce for a 13-yard touchdown, which elevated the Chiefs to a 17-3 lead with 32 seconds left in the first half. Free safety Tashaun Gipson went berserk immediately after Kelce scored, suggesting the Browns’ defensive backs weren’t on the same page and blew the coverage.
Thanks to a 23-yard run by Manziel, the Browns had a chance to trim their deficit before halftime. However, Coons’ 51-yard field goal attempt was blocked Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen as time expired in the second quarter. The Browns have had four field goals blocked in their past five games.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.