When all 330 pounds of Haloti Ngata landed squarely on Browns quarterback Jason Campbell, there was no doubt he felt it.
Ngata was flagged 15 yards for unnecessary roughness on the third down play in the first quarter and Campbell was forced out of the game for the rest of the series with a rib injury.
After the game, the two cleared up the situation and Ngata apologized.
“Ngata told me he wasn’t trying to do anything on purpose,” Campbell said. ”He actually was trying to jump over his guy to keep the guy from running into his legs…and just accidentally fell on me. He’s not a dirty player.”
As Ngata fell onto Campbell, the football was between the quarterback and the ground. It reminded Campbell of when, as a member of the Oakland Raiders in 2011, he broke his collarbone in a game against the Browns.
That injury, and the Raiders’ subsequent trade for Carson Palmer, kept Campbell from playing another down that season.
This time, Campbell was able to return to action.
“I wasn’t coming out of the game,” Campbell said. “You’d have to drag me out. I wanted to stay out there with those guys and keep fighting.”
Fight he did, through pain, in leading the Browns to the 24-18 win over the Ravens.
“I kept telling them [the offensive line] just give me time ’cause my ribs are really bothering me and hurting me,” Campbell said.
He went on to say that the injury caused him trouble with the speed and accuracy of a couple throws on which he wanted to “cut it loose.” Campbell got X-rays taken after the game but doubted that any of his ribs were broken.
Despite the injury, Campbell excelled for his second straight game as Browns starter, completing 23 of his 35 passes for 262 yards and three touchdowns.
The numbers are similar to his stats in the close loss to the Chiefs last week, when he was 22 of 36 passing for 293 yards and two touchdowns.
Maybe even more importantly, Campbell has yet to commit a turnover in his two starts. Brandon Weeden, on the other hand, has thrown six interceptions and fumbled three times this season.
“He’s a pro’s pro,” cornerback Joe Haden said of Campbell. “Every time the offense moves the ball like that and does great things, you see the defense on the sideline, we’re so excited. That gets us juiced to go out there and get the ball back to them.”
Campbell’s ability to move around and prolong plays has also been a boon, as was evident on the fourth down conversion just past midfield late in the game.
“He’s a tough guy. He’s a team guy,” head coach Rob Chudzinski said. “The plays that he made were huge down the stretch.”
For the second time this season, it appears Chudzinski has made the right move in replacing Weeden with another quarterback originally behind him on the depth chart.
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