BROWNS A question, a catch, a half-game behind
The Cleveland Browns (7-6) are still in the playoff hunt.
BEREA (AP) -- Cleveland Browns coach Butch Davis doesn't believe everything he reads -- or sees.
Shortly after watching game film of Sunday's last-second 21-20 win at Jacksonville, Davis was shown a sequence of photographs appearing to show that Quincy Morgan's game-winning touchdown reception hit the ground.
Davis momentarily peered at the three Florida newspaper photos, the bottom one showing the ball tucked tightly under Morgan's arm but also resting on the Alltell Stadium grass.
Inconclusive evidence, the coach surmised.
"He's still got it," Davis said with a smile.
Thrust into race
And the Browns (7-6) are still in the playoff hunt. Just seconds away from having its postseason hopes dashed, Cleveland was thrust back into the middle of the AFC's wide-open playoff chase following yet another heartstopping game for the Browns. It left them one-half game behind the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers.
"Amazing. That was unbelievable," said quarterback Tim Couch, whose 50-yard heave was hauled in by Morgan as time expired. "We knew we had to do whatever we could to win the game."
That's usually the case with these unpredictable Browns, who have made a habit of taking games down to the final minute in their two seasons under Davis.
Sunday's frenetic finish was the 16th time in 29 games in Davis' tenure that a Browns game was decided in the final 60 seconds. Of those 16, seven have been decided on the game's final play.
"Man, I can't explain it," said running back Jamel White. "Things happen for a reason, I guess. It just shows what kind of a team we have. We just never give up. That's the good part of all this."
Good for the team, yes. Not so good for a coach's health.
Asked how his blood pressure was doing, Davis joked, "It's good today."
It must have been skyrocketing in Sunday's closing seconds, when the Browns rallied.
Morgan's catch followed a bit of confusion for the second-year wide receiver, who didn't know what play the Browns were calling with 13 seconds remaining.
As the Browns hurried to the line of scrimmage, Morgan realized he was on the right -- but wrong -- side of the field. He began running toward the left sideline before Kevin Johnson motioned for Morgan to stay still.
Signal
Morgan then wasn't sure what Couch wanted him to do, so he looked at wideout Andre King, who flashed a "thumb's up" sign to his teammate.
"I thought, 'What the hell is the thumb?' " Morgan said.
He finally remembered it was for a four-receiver pattern called 'Jet', the Browns' equivalent for the time-tested schoolyard play of "Everybody go long."
Even after Danny Boyd's 22-yard field goal with 50 second to go put the Jaguars ahead 20-14, White said the Browns never lost hope that a comeback was possible.
On Cleveland's sideline, Jerry Butler, a former Browns coach and currently the team's director of player development, was reminding everyone there was still time left.
"He was saying, 'This is the month of miracles'," White said.
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