The Browns' win took the fun out of Carson Palmer's big day.
Matt Roth (53) has Carson Palmer headed to the ground and Marcus Bernard is closing in on the play that kept the Bengals out of range for a game-tying field goal Sunday afternoon.CLEVELAND, Ohio -- That Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer torched the Browns for 371 yards passing and two touchdowns Sunday afternoon meant nothing to him in the immediate aftermath.
The Browns took the fun out of it with a 23-20 victory.
"We did some things well, but it's hard to feel good about much when you lose," Palmer said. "This one really hurt. We wanted this. We were ready for this team, we were ready to come in here and get a win, and we didn't. So this one stings a little bit ... a lot of bit."
Palmer did not throw an interception and registered a passer rating of 121.4, but he fumbled twice. Though Palmer was not solely to blame for either, he pointed the finger at himself.
"Both of those times I put our defense in a tough situation," he said.
The first turnover occurred with 5:50 left in the first quarter, when Palmer's attempted handoff to Cedric Benson went awry. Defensive end Kenyon Coleman recovered at the Cleveland 48.
The Browns turned it into a 3-0 lead.
Cleveland's defense appeared to create split-second confusion in the Bengals' backfield.
"They had corner pressure," Palmer said. "They did a good job of having the right play called at the right time, but I've got to find a way to get that ball into Ced's belly and give him a chance to get back to the line of scrimmage, to kind of eat that one instead of turning it over."
Midway through the third quarter, the Bengals faced a second-and-10 from their 26. Palmer began to throw, then pulled the ball back. Browns linebacker Scott Fujita blasted through to knock the ball loose and Coleman recovered at the Cincinnati 13. Credit Fujita with a sack for minus-7 yards.
The Browns again settled for a field goal, which increased their advantage to 23-10.
"I've got to feel that guy coming and find a way to get the ball out of bounds, or just tuck and take the sack," Palmer said. "They run the ball successfully, and when you give them a short field, they're going to get at least a field goal."
On the ensuing possession, Palmer led the Bengals on a 76-yard drive that resulted in Mike Nugent's 25-yard field goal. The Bengals walked off the field somewhat deflated because they had failed to score seven points after having first-and-10 at the Cleveland 11. Palmer was sacked for a six-yard loss, Benson gained two and Palmer connected with Brian Leonard for eight.
Midway through the second quarter, the Bengals had come away with just three after having a first-and-10 at the Cleveland 13.
"When you don't score touchdowns in the red zone, it's always on us, it's always the offense's fault," Palmer said. "But they did a good job in the red zone, dropping eight, nine guys.
"You only get down there every so often, and you need seven as opposed to three, especially in tight games."
Palmer's three-yard shovel pass to Leonard early in the fourth cut the deficit to 23-20. The Bengals' defense forced a three-and-out.
Palmer directed a drive from the Cincinnati 14 into Cleveland territory, but it stalled after a first-and-10 at the 38. The Bengals punted from the 45 with 4:45 left and pinned the Browns at their 11.
"At the time, I remember thinking we'd get another crack at it," Palmer said.
No such luck. The hard running of Peyton Hillis, combined with an inexcusable Cincinnati defensive-holding penalty, helped the Browns maintain possession the remainder of the game.
"They did such a good job of running the ball," Palmer said. "You've go to take your hat off to them and give them credit. They outplayed us."