plays that changed the game in the Browns’ win over the Lions

Thursday night brought the fourth and final game of the 2019 preseason to Cleveland for the Browns, who hosted the Detroit Lions at FirstEnergy Stadium for a contest that began as an ugly affair.

Luckily for everyone in attendance and those watching at home, things eventually turned around. The Browns came away with a 20-16 win, finishing the preseason 3-1 and with some momentum as a much-anticipated regular season awaits just around the corner.

Here are the six plays that changed the Browns’ win over the Lions.

                         1. Dontrell Hilliard’s long first-half run

The Browns have only seen seven carries from Kareem Hunt, leaving the majority to D'Ernest Johnson, who has performed admirably. But all the while, there was something missing, and it wasn’t Nick Chubb — it was Dontrell Hilliard.

After we spent an entire offseason raving about Hilliard’s improvements, we didn’t see much of him after a lackluster Week 1 performance against Washington. He returned at full strength Thursday and made the most of it, starting with the team’s longest rushing attempt of the preseason.

Hilliard’s run off left tackle for a gain of 22 got the Browns’ offense going and jump-started a drive that ended in Austin Seibert’s first field goal attempt of the night, a successful try from 36 yards.

2. Ray-Ray Armstrong’s sack of Tom Savage

Detroit began the ensuing drive with enviable field position, starting at the Browns’ 36, and appeared poised to respond. Ray-Ray Armstrong ended that on second down, sacking Lions quarterback Tom Savage after a prolonged rush up the middle for a loss of 14. The takedown essentially pushed Detroit out of field goal range thanks to an incompletion on the next play, forcing Detroit to punt and waste the excellent field position.

                   3. Garrett Gilbert’s pass to Derrick Willies for 36-yard gain

The Browns flashed the high-pressure proficiency they’ve showed off in small moments during this preseason late in the first half Thursday. Only this time, it was Gilbert at the controls, not Baker Mayfield. Gilbert was precise and efficient, finding Ishmael Hyman — who got off to a rough start before getting back on track just before the half — for an 11-yard gain. He followed with the completion to Willies, which took the Browns from a long look down the field from the end zone to a quick glance.

Gilbert’s connection with Willies put the Browns at the Detroit 33, where he found the wideout again and did a little more work, setting up…

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