Cleveland Browns crush Bill Belichick's New England Patriots, 34-14

The Browns push Bill Belichick's Patriots all over the field en route to a 34-14 victory Sunday afternoon at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Head coach Bill Belichick never knew what hit him and his Patriots on Sunday afternoon at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

If he did, he won't admit it. Ever.

Belichick and his hoodie were powerless to stop the Browns, who ripped and snorted their way to a 34-14 victory.

The Browns (3-5) dominated time of possession en route to a second straight victory. They had overwhelmed the defending Super Bowl champion Saints in New Orleans two weeks ago.

The Patriots (6-2) lost for the first time in six games.

Given a bye week to prepare for future Hall of Famer Belichick, Browns coach Eric Mangini cooked up a beat-down that was not as close as the final score indicated. The Mangeniuses played like a team on a mission from the opening kickoff; the Patriots often appeared dazed and confused.

Among Cleveland's many individual standouts were rookie quarterback Colt McCoy, running back Peyton Hillis and the versatile Josh Cribbs.

McCoy was mistake-free in improving to 2-1 in his three NFL starts. Hillis (184 rushing yards) physically overmatched New England's defense. Cribbs did a little bit of everything. 

The Browns' led, 10-0, after one quarter and 17-7 at halftime. The spread was 24-7 through three.

After the Browns forced New England to punt on the first possession of the second half, McCoy went to work. He performed like an All-Pro in orchestrating an 11-play, 72-yard drive that consumed seven minutes. McCoy's 16-yard scramble to the left pylon pushed Cleveland's advantage to 24-7 with 5:53 left in the third quarter.

New England punted again. This time, the Browns used 13 plays to move 61 yards in 7:48. Phil Dawson's 37-yard field goal with 10:45 left in the fourth made it 27-7.

The Patriots scored in garbage time. Hillis answered with a 35-yard run for the final margin.

The Browns' 10-point advantage at halftime came while holding the ball for 17 minutes, 21 seconds.

Cribbs returned the opening kickoff to the Cleveland 37. The Browns turned the relatively short field into a 38-yard field goal by Dawson.

New England's Sammy Morris muffed the ensuing kickoff, Ray Ventrone recovering at the Patriots 19. McCoy completed a 17-yard pass to Evan Moore, then Hillis scored on a run.

The Browns forced a punt and were driving for a potential 17-point lead, only to have Hillis fumble during a 16-yard burst. The Patriots recovered at their 36.

New England quarterback Tom Brady and his linemen seemed to be unnerved early by Browns defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's amoeba defense. But Brady and his offense got it together in the second quarter.

Brady's 2-yard pass to Aaron Hernandez capped an 11-play, 79-yard drive that pulled the Patriots within 10-7 midway through the second. Hernandez caught a deflection off Rob Gronkowski's hands.

The Browns responded with a nine-play, 60-yard possession that lasted 5:20. Chansi Stuckey scored on an 11-yard run to the left. Stuckey took an inside handoff from Cribbs in what had the feel of a fumblerooskie because Stuckey stood still for a moment as Cribbs rolled right.

In the final minutes of the half, Brady engineered a drive deep into Cleveland territory. Gronkowski was stripped by Abe Elam at the 3 with less than 30 seconds left. Elam recovered.