The New Orleans Saints beat the Cleveland Browns 23-22 in overtime Sunday at Caesars Superdome, scoring the decisive touchdown on a 15-yard pass from Tyler Shough to Juwan Johnson with 4:17 left in the extra period. Cleveland’s two-point conversion attempt failed.
New Orleans broke a 16-16 tie built over four quarters of field goals and traded scores. Shough finished 21 of 35 for 265 yards and the game-winning touchdown, while Audric Estime ran for 72 yards and a score on 15 carries. Cleveland’s Shedeur Sanders threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns in the loss, including a 64-yard strike to KC Concepcion that briefly put the Browns ahead in the fourth quarter.
Key Moments And How New Orleans Won
New Orleans opened with Charlie Smyth’s 30-yard field goal in the first quarter. Andre Szmyt tied it with a 41-yarder in the second, then added a 30-yard field goal in the third. Smyth answered from 27 yards to make it 6-6 heading into the fourth.
The fourth quarter turned into a shootout. Smyth hit a 48-yarder to put New Orleans up 9-6, but Sanders found Concepcion for a 64-yard touchdown that gave Cleveland a 13-9 lead. Estime answered with a 2-yard touchdown run with 58 seconds left, putting the Saints back in front 16-13. Szmyt then drilled a 51-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining to force overtime at 16-16.
In the extra period, Shough led the Saints down the field and connected with Johnson for the go-ahead score. Sanders answered with a 39-yard touchdown pass to Harold Fannin Jr. to cut the deficit to one, but the two-point conversion failed, ending the game at 23-22.
Top Performers
Shough completed 21 of 35 passes for 265 yards and a touchdown without an interception. Chris Olave led all receivers with seven catches for 98 yards, and Estime added 72 rushing yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. Defensively, Carl Granderson recorded two sacks and Kaden Elliss led New Orleans with 11 tackles.
Sanders completed 19 of 31 passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns for Cleveland. Denzel Boston caught six passes for 98 yards, and Concepcion added four catches for 85 yards and the long touchdown. Carson Schwesinger paced the Browns defense with 15 tackles, and Myles Harden recorded two sacks.
The Saints outgained the Browns 396 yards to 355 and ran for 160 yards at five yards per carry, but turned the ball over twice on fumbles. Cleveland was 0-for-2 in the red zone and converted just 8 of 18 third-down chances, limitations that kept the Browns from closing out the game in regulation despite Sanders’ 297 passing yards.
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