A trip that began with the Cleveland Browns' plane getting stuck in the mud ended with their first-year coach tripping on the steps to the interview-room podium.
Because the Browns were able to achieve their objective with a 27-19 victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Pat Shurmur had the poise to catch himself before falling and take the misstep in stride.
"I'll handle that after that (game)," he said.
While Colts fans bemoaned their team's 0-2 plight without injured quarterback Peyton Manning, the Browns were able to celebrate in large part because of their passer, Colt McCoy. The second-year pro from the University of Texas shook off taking an early hit in the back from Dwight Freeney on a sack to lead the Browns with a steady hand.
McCoy rolled out more, found open receivers and never lost sight of the importance of handing off to bruising 250-pound running back Peyton Hillis. Yeah, the visitors added to the Colts' misery with guys named Colt and Peyton.
McCoy completed 22-of-32 passes for 211 yards with one score. Held in check most of the day, Hillis broke loose late when the Colts blitzed both safeties inside to put this one away on a 24-yard TD run. Hillis finished with 94 yards rushing on 27 carries with two scores.
"The thing I was proud of today was Peyton ran the ball hard, especially there at the end, and the receivers showed up," McCoy said. "They made some big plays; they got open. That's when things start to click."
While the Colts were settling for field goals on their best scoring drives until the final possession, the Browns made the most of their best chances with touchdowns. McCoy rolled out to avoid the rush, bought time and found tight end Evan Moore for a 16-yard touchdown pass and a 7-6 lead in the second quarter.
When the Colts nudged back in front, McCoy and Hillis drove the visitors 80 yards in 10 plays to go ahead 14-9 at halftime. McCoy passed to convert a pair of third downs -- the Browns were 8-of-16 on that important statistic -- and set up a Hillis 1-yard scoring run with a 28-yard pass to Mohamed Massaquoi.
"Boy was moving, wasn't he?" Hillis said of McCoy. "Looked like he was running for his life there a couple times, but Colt is a playmaker; he's a great athlete."
A Browns team that had a defensive lapse late in a 27-17 loss to Cincinnati at home last week didn't buckle this time. Shurmur credited his red-zone defense, which limited the Colts to four field goals until the hosts made it closer in the final minute with a Kerry Collins touchdown pass to tight end Dallas Clark.
"We knew he was not going to run the offense like Peyton (Manning) does, so we knew we could rattle him after we hit him a couple times," Browns defensive tackle Phil Taylor said of the 38-year-old Collins, who was sacked twice, lost a fumble and threw one interception. Collins had but 96 yards passing before the last quarter.
McCoy presented the game ball to Shurmur, who was emotional about his first NFL coaching victory.
"It's special, very special," a teary-eyed Shurmur said. "Listen, I'm just the guy answering the questions. This is a team thing. They'll all get one."
The Browns, delayed 31/2 hours by the stuck-in-the-mud plane that necessitated boarding another flight Saturday, looked forward to enjoying a smoother trip home.
Original article:
http://www.indystar.com/article/20110919/SPORTS03/109190317/McCoy-Cleveland-Browns-successful-trip
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