Commanders Survive Late Scare, Beat Browns

The Washington Commanders started the preseason on the right foot with a road win over the Cleveland Browns on Friday night

The Washington Commanders (1-0) got off to a good start in preseason action, defeating the Cleveland Browns (1-1) 17-15 on the road Friday night.

Washington took a 14-2 lead into the locker room, but Cleveland slowly but surely clawed its way back into the game. Trailing by eight with less than two minutes to go, Browns quarterback Kellen Mond hit receiver Mike Harley Jr. for a touchdown that gave the Browns a chance to tie. However, Mond's pass on the two-point conversion fell incomplete and the Commanders held on to win.

The Commanders started off slow offensively with a punt and a safety on their first two drives, but found their groove soon after with back-to-back touchdown drives. First, starting quarterback Sam Howell hit receiver Jahan Dotson from 26-yards out to cap off an 80-yard drive. On the next drive, backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett ran it in from 12 yards out to complete an 89-yard drive.

Howell put together a solid performance in three drives of action, completing nine of 12 passes for 77 yards and the touchdown to Dotson. However, Brissett and third-stringer Jake Fromm each threw an interception. Sixth-round rookie Chris Rodriguez Jr. led the team in rushing with 39 yards on five carries, while Byron Pringle led the team in receiving with 32 yards on one catch. Cleveland gained 387 total yards to Washington's 289.

The Commanders return to preseason action on Aug. 21 when they host the Baltimore Ravens at FedEx Field. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. and the game will air nationally on ESPN.

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