Mayfield-to-Perriman connection growing
On a third-and-9 DENVER — play during the Browns’ first possession in Saturday night’s 17-16 win, wide receiver Breshad Perriman jumped to catch a 31-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield as he fell into the end zone with Broncos cornerback Tramaine Brock closely covering him.
With the four-play, 51-yard drive, highlighted by Perriman’s first touchdown since Dec. 4, 2016, the Browns captured a 7-0 advantage with 11:49 left in the first quarter.
“It was amazing,” Perriman said of scoring a TD. “It was a great feeling. It feels even better that we got the win. I’m just blessed and thankful that I got it.
“I knew it was man coverage from the start, and I knew Bake could throw it to me. He threw the ball in a perfect place.”
Perriman and Mayfield have connected for big plays in back-to-back games. Perriman caught a 66-yard pass on the offense’s first snap in last week’s 26-20 win over the Carolina Panthers.
“He’s got a lot of confidence right now, and I have a lot of confidence in him,” Mayfield said. “He’s making plays, as you guys have seen the last few weeks, and that’s one of those things. Not a lot of people can make that catch. A guy all over him, a high ball, go up and make a catch, a competitive catch at that, a huge play on third down and long. That was big time.
“I trust those receivers, and they need to know that. Putting the ball up for them to make a play, I trust Breshad right now. He’s been making the plays, and they feed off that. You build that confidence with them, and the next one, I guarantee he catches, too.”
Grounded
Broncos rookie running back Phillip Lindsay entered the game with an NFL-best 5.8 yards per carry, but the Browns held him to an average of 1.7 (24 yards on 14 carries).
“We really forced them out of their game plan,” defensive back TJ Carrie said. “We took away their strength, which was the running game. We knew coming into this game, take away and forcing them to pass, which is something they hadn’t had to do in so many games.”
“Lindsay is a hell of a player, and we had to slow him down tonight,” defensive end Chris Smith added. “We knew it was going to start up front as a defense ...”
Guest speaker
Mayfield reflected on NBA legend Kobe Bryant addressing the Browns during their team meeting Friday afternoon in Denver.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Kobe,” Mayfield said. “He’s just one of those guys, attitude-wise, there’s no one else in the world like him. He’s just unbelievable. He was one of my idols growing up. I’m not good at basketball, so not like that, but just mentality-wise, work ethic, determination, will to win.
“It was so awesome getting to hear from him.”
Extra points
■ Rookie running back Nick Chubb reached the 100-yard rushing plateau for the third time this season. He finished with 100 yards on 20 carries and had a long run of 40 yards to start the Browns’ final possession.
■ The Browns increased their number of takeaways this season to 30 by intercepting Keenum twice.
■ Britton Colquitt placed two punts inside the 20-yard line. His 32 punts inside the 20 this season are tied for the most in franchise history.
■ Linebacker Jamie Collins had a sack, his third this season. He has 16.5 in his career.