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MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Tim Couch completed 7-of-9 passes for 138 yards and a touchdown as the Cleveland Browns posted a 27-15 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in the exhibition opener for both teams. Beginning his fourth season with the Browns, Couch played the entire first half and looked sharp, tossing a 45-yard TD pass to Jamel White just 2:05 into the contest. Moe Williams, Minnesota's leading rusher with 19 yards on four carries, tied the game on a four-yard TD run with 4:58 left in the first quarter. The Browns suffered a major blow on the play when Pro Bowl linebacker Jamir Miller was carted off the field with a torn right Achilles tendon. Phil Dawson kicked field goals of 46 and 45 yards in the second quarter to give the Browns a 13-7 halftime lead. Cleveland never looked back, taking a 20-7 lead on Kalvin Pearson's 62-yard interception return 4:14 into the second half. Kelly Holcomb, who completed 7-of-10 for 100 yards, threw a five-yard TD strike to Mark Campbell to make it 27-7 with 7:12 left in the third period. Autry Denson paced Cleveland on the ground with 41 yards on eight carries. William Green, the Browns' first-round pick, rushed for just 11 yards on six carries in his NFL debut. Minnesota played without offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, its first-round pick who remains unsigned. Daunte Culpepper completed 8-of-13 for 66 yards for the Vikings while backup Todd Bouman was 7-of-11 for 48 yards. Minnesota got its final touchdown when Matt Birk recovered a fumble in the end zone with 2:37 left in the contest. |
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