The Lions improved to 2-1 in the preseason by beating the Cleveland Browns today by a score of 35-27. Detroit trailed at halftime by 10 points, but Matthew Stafford led the Lions to a touchdown to open the third quarter and Shaun Hill led the backups to a pair of second half touchdowns, both of which were scored by Aaron Brown.
The first quarter gave us all a look at Jahvid Best's explosiveness. Following a long drive that only produced a field goal for Cleveland, Best opened Detroit's first drive of the game with a 51-yard run. Two plays later, Matthew Stafford found Bryant Johnson for a seven-yard touchdown.
The Lions looked to be in very good shape on their next drive, but a Kevin Smith fumble was returned for a 44-yard touchdown. That changed the complexion of the first half, as the Lions' offense didn't do a whole lot in the second quarter, partly because of a number of penalties. The defense also struggled, giving up two touchdowns before halftime.
In the second half, things went much better for Detroit on both sides of the ball. To open the third quarter, Stafford led Detroit to a touchdown drive that was capped off by a two-yard run by Smith. Later on, Hill led Detroit to two touchdown drives, both of which followed a Cleveland fumble and were capped off by Aaron Brown.
The Lions will finish up the preseason on Thursday at home against the Buffalo Bills. The starters will not play much, if at all, so it will be a game for the backups to show that they deserve a spot on the roster. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m., although the game will not be shown locally until later in the night because it won't be a sellout.