The Green Bay Packers got a touchdown pass from Jordan Love to Dontayvion Wicks on the third play from scrimmage, a rushing touchdown from Emanuel Wilson and a perfect day of kicking from Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph in a preseason-opening win over the Cleveland Browns on Saturday at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
The Packers jumped out to a 7-0 lead, took a 17-3 lead into half time and later closed out a 23-10 win.
“I love how our guys competed in all three phases,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “I thought they put a lot of good tape out there. The things we were looking for, in terms of effort and running to the ball and finishing, I thought it was on point.”
Love hit Wicks on a 65-yard score on the Packers’ first series. Wicks ran past Ronnie Hickman from the slot, and Love hit him in stride deep to give the Packers an early lead. Love and most of the other Packers veterans played only one series.
Wilson, who had a game-high 67 rushing yards, scored from five yards out in the second quarter to extend the Packers’ advantage to 14-3.
Carlson and Joseph both made an extra point. Carlson hit field goals of 46 yards and 33 yards, while Joseph hit one from 35. Altogether, the kicker pair finished 5-for-5 overall.
Among the standouts for the Packers was receiver Grant DuBose, who caught five passes for a game-high 66 yards; and safety Evan Williams, who had a team-high six tackles and a forced fumble. Defensive lineman Lukas Van Ness created three tackles for a loss and a sack in the first quarter.
The Packers dominated the line of scrimmage, rushing for 155 yards on 34 carries (4.6 per carry) while allowing 56 rushing yards on 21 carries (2.7). The Packers also had a 3-to-1 advantage in sacks.
Overall, the three quarterbacks — Love, Sean Clifford and Micheal Pratt — completed 17 of 28 passes for 220 yards, one touchdown and zero turnovers.
Rookie receiver Julian Hicks had a 23-yard catch and a 14-yard run in the second half.
The Packers committed only three penalties. Green Bay got into the red zone four times but scored only one touchdown. The Browns turned the ball over on downs twice.
Matt LaFleur’s team will stay on the road in the preseason next week. The Packers play the Broncos in Denver next Sunday night.
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