Browns Bid Farewell Final Dawg Pound Appearance A Victory

For the time being, they’re simply the Browns.

Not the Cleveland Browns. Not the Baltimore Browns. Just the Browns.

Believing they may have been playing their last game ever at Cleveland Stadium, the Browns beat the Cincinnati Bengals 26-10 Sunday before 55,875 rowdy fans who didn’t want to leave when it was over.

“It was a happy crowd, but I noticed many who had tears running down their face,” said Earnest Byner, who gave the Browns their first 100-yard rushing performance of the year. “I felt the energies from the crowd.”

The Browns close their season at Jacksonville next week, and owner Art Modell plans to move the 50-year-old franchise to Baltimore next year.

Although there were about 12,000 unsold tickets and nearly 11,000 no-shows, the “Dawg Pound” bleachers at the east end of the stadium were packed until the end. Fans there ripped up some of the long bench seats and tossed them toward the field late in the game.

After two firecrackers exploded in the end zone near the bleachers during the fourth quarter, the officials twice had the teams switch directions so the action would be farther away. At the final gun, about a dozen Browns players sprinted to the bleachers to shake hands with the fans.

“That was all just spur of the moment,” said Vinny Testaverde, who threw two touchdown passes. “Everybody ran out there to the Dawg Pound. It’s been a great tradition in Cleveland the last decade or so. You can feel the excitement down on the field.”

Oilers 23, Jets 6

A game that was supposed to be memorable turned out forgettable.

What likely will be the final NFL game played in the Astrodome was low voltage for excitement. Steve McNair made his first NFL start and threw a 35-yard touchdown pass, leading Houston to a drab victory over New York.

McNair’s touchdown pass to Haywood Jeffires with 38 seconds left in the first quarter and a 53-yard pass play to Chris Sanders in the fourth quarter that set up a touchdown drew cheers from a crowd of 35,872.

McNair was glad to see it happen for the veterans.

“A lot of these guys have been here a long time and they wanted to go out winners,” McNair said.

Cowboys 21, Giants 20

Dallas’ Troy Aikman converted three critical third-down passes on a drive that set up Chris Boniol’s game-winning field goal allowing Dallas to beat visiting New York.

It was Boniol’s fifth field gaol of the game.

Bills 23, Dolphins 20

David White, a linebacker cut three times since his rookie year in 1993, pikced off a Dan Marino pass lat in the game to set up Steve Christie’s game-winning field goal at Buffalo.

Miami had come back from a 10-point halftime deficit to tie the game at 13, then tied it again 20-20 early in the fourth quarter.

Eagles 21, Cardinals 20

Philadelphia’s defense forced five second-half turnovers and limited Arizona to field goals on four of six trips inside the 20 to earn a home playoff game with a comeback victory over Arizona at Philadelphia.

Rodney Peete’s 37-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Williams in the fourth quarter helped Philadelphia overcome a 17-point deficit and beat Ryan’s Cardinals.

The Cardinals drove for what would have been the game-winning field goal with 1:55 left in the game. But Greg Davis, who hit on all four previous attempts, was short with a 47-yard try.

Chiefs 20, Broncos 17

Steve Bono threw for one touchdown and ran for another and Vaughn Booker ran 14 yards with a Jonh Elway fumble for another TD as Kansas City locked up a first-round playoff bye with a rain-soaked victory over Denver at Kansas City, Mo.

Booker’s touchdown with 1:52 left put the Chiefs on top 20-10, but Elway did manage one final touchdown drive, capped by his 3-yard pass to Mike Pritchard with 12 seconds left. The Chiefs then got the onside kick, all but eliminating Denver from playoff contention.

Chargers 27, Colts 24

John Carney kicked a 43-yard field goal with three seconds to go, giving San Diego a victory over Indianapolis and keeping the defending AFC champions’ playoff hopes alive.

It was the fourth straight victory for the Chargers who finish the regular season next week at the New York Giants. The Colts need a victory at home against New England for a chance for their first playoff appearance since 1987.

Redskins 35, Rams 23

At St. Louis, Tom Carter and Tony Woods scored defensive touchdowns in a victory that all but killed St. Louis’ playoff hopes. The Rams have lost eight of their last 11, the last four by a combined 152-69.

Mistakes overshadowed the second consecutive 300-yard passing game from former Washington State and Shadle Park High quarterback Mark Rypien, who was 34 of 50 for 340 yards, and negated the Rams’ advantage in total yards, 434-254.

Lions 44, Jaguars 0

Barry Sanders ran for two touchdowns, Scott Mitchell passed for two more and the high-flying Lions breezed to a rout over Jacksonville at Pontiac, Mich.

The Lions, who extended their winning streak to six games, have scored 190 points in their last six games and remain in strong contention for a playoff berth.

Panthers 21, Falcons 17

Carolina quarterback Kerry Collins linked up with Willie Green on an 89-yard touchdown pass with 7:06 remaining, completing a Panthers’ comeback from a two-touchdown deficit to give them a victory over Atlanta at Clemson, S.C.

Bears 31, Buccaneers 10

Chicago kept its playoff hopes alive and killed Tampa Bay’s postseason chances.

Rashaan Salaam rushed for a career-high 134 yards and three touchdowns as the Bears defeated the Buccaneers at Chicago.

Chicago would qualify for the playoffs if it beats Philadelphia at Soldier Field next week and Atlanta falls to San Francisco and Minnesota loses one of its final two games, against San Francisco and Cincinnati.

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Sunday’s best Quarterbacks Mark Rypien, Rams 34-50-340 Jeff George, Falcons 29-53-310 Kerry Collins, Panthers 18-28-283 Running backs Rodney Hampton, Giants 34-187 Thurman Thomas, Bills 35-148 Rashaan Salaam, Bears 27-134 Receivers Tony Martin, Chargers 10-168 Alexander Wright, Redskins 8-132