Bills 23, Browns 20: Myles Garrett doesn't get record and Cleveland can't pull off upset

CLEVELAND — Myles Garrett didn't get the sack record.Quinshon Judkins was driven off the field in a cart after his right fibula broke and right ankle dislocated.Shedeur Sanders threw two interceptions and ran into the locker room to have a bloody pinkie bandaged.The Browns lost their fourth straight.Bills 23, Browns 20.Myles Garrett given half-sack of Josh Allen, is one away from breaking NFL season recordThe Browns played hard, and well for stretches, but couldn't pull off the big upset and fell to 3-12. They have two games left, the No. 1 pick in the draft remains a possibility and the futures of coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry still must be decided."Just frustrated, want to close that one and want to get a win versus a good football team at our place," Stefanski said. "And we didn't do it at the end, so that's the frustrating part. Love how the team fights, which I'm not surprised. That's who those guys are."The defense couldn't stop the Bills (11-4) in the first half at sunny and cold Huntington Bank Field, the interceptions proved costly and the offense couldn't complete a comeback in front of a crowd loaded with Bills fans.Garrett was awarded a half-sack on a play in which Bills quarterback Josh Allen gave himself up at the 1-yard line to avoid a safety. Garrett and fellow defensive end Alex Wright were closest to Allen and split the sack. Rookie defensive tackle Mason Graham was originally credited with the full sack.Big loss for Browns as Quinshon Judkins breaks fibula, dislocates ankle in defeat to BillsGarrett has 22 sacks and needs one in the final two games to set the NFL single-season record. Michael Strahan (2001) and T.J. Watt (2021) share the record at 22.5."I saw his eyes get big when he saw me," Garrett said of Allen. "So I knew he recognized who it was, so he started to hightail it the other way and then he slipped and I slipped. So I was thinking this could be the one to tie it, but ended up just a half."Garrett didn't have many good chances to rush, as the Bills dominated on the ground with 164 yards and three touchdowns. All three scores and 133 of the yards came in the first half. Allen completed 12 of 19 passes for 130 yards and an 83.2 passer rating.Sanders and the offense moved the ball consistently — 22 first downs — but couldn't cash in enough opportunities.Browns QB Shedeur Sanders on injury to his pinkie finger. pic.twitter.com/G0FgQ7w6dc— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) December 21, 2025https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsSanders left the field for a key third down in the first half after his right pinkie was cut when a teammate inadvertently stepped on it. He missed only one play — Dillon Gabriel was sacked and the Browns had to settle for a 24-yard field goal — and went 20-for-29 for 157 yards, a touchdown, two interceptions, two sacks and a 64.9 rating. He scrambled four times for a team-high 49 yards.The 69 percent completions were a career high in his fifth start and sixth game.Commentary: Glimmers of hope from Shedeur Sanders, Browns in loss to Bills"Kind of just shows some grit right there," said tight end Harold Fannin Jr., who caught a 13-yard touchdown and ran in a 1-yarder. "I know he wants to play, so he's gonna do all he can to come out there and play and give us his best."The Browns sustained a significant loss late in the first half when Judkins, a rookie running back, suffered a gruesome injury after catching a pass and being hit by linebacker Matt Milano.Judkins didn't try to get up. Teammates and Bills players patted him on the helmet after he was helped onto the cart. Stefanski announced the break and dislocation and said he'll have surgery."Obviously very disappointed for the young man," Stefanski said. "He will bounce back. I have zero doubt about that with him."Judkins entered the game leading NFL rookies with 805 rushing yards and tied with seven rushing touchdowns. He rushed eight times for 22 yards Sunday and had five catches for 29 yards.Rookie Raheim Sanders filled in in the second half and rushed 11 times for 42 yards.The interceptions proved costly, leading to 10 Bills points and depriving the Browns of the chance to score.The first came late in the first quarter on a play that started at the Buffalo 31-yard line. Sanders threw to Judkins, who was breaking over the middle. The ball was behind him, caromed off his shoulder into the air and safety Jordan Poyer grabbed it.The second interception was on Cleveland's first drive of the third quarter. Sanders avoided pressure and tried to throw short late for receiver Malachi Corley. End Joey Bosa tipped it and tackle DaQuan Jones caught it."Anytime that there's a batted ball, you'll look at your eyes and see if there's things you can do differently," Stefanski said. "We'll learn from those."Browns Kevin Stefanski says proud of way Shedeur Sanders fought. pic.twitter.com/6cjs0SgHPN— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) December 21, 2025https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsTrailing 23-17 with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Browns settled for a 41-yard Andre Szmyt field goal after a loss of 7 on a third-down swing pass. It would've tied the game if Szmyt had made a 48-yard field goal at the end of the first half. The snap was low, Corey Bojorquez didn't get the hold down and Szmyt didn't try the kick.With the Browns within 23-20, the defense got two stops, but the offense failed to pick up a first down.On fourth-and-2 from the Cleveland 44 with five minutes left, Sanders was sacked for a loss of 13 yards."You're going to have to play aggressive to beat this team, and I felt good about going for it there," Stefanski said. "Just didn't happen in that moment."Bills tight end Dawson Knox dropped a fourth-down pass in the end zone to give the Browns another chance.Sanders was sacked, then called for intentional grounding at the 1-yard line to bring up third-and-32. After an incompletion, Bojorquez punted. Allen converted third-and-1 with a sneak and the Bills ran out the clock."You're going to be in games where you got to go 85 or 90 (yards) or whatever it is to go win it, and we'll look at ways that we can be better as an offense there," Stefanski said.Fannin's touchdown catch capped the opening drive, as play caller Tommy Rees had the Bills off-balance with a combination of short passes and runs. The Browns couldn't maintain the momentum because the defense gave up touchdowns on Buffalo's first three drives.The problems with the run defense were a continuation of the previous two losses. Garrett said they were more physical and tackled better in the second half."We were just flat the first half and we fixed it the second half, but it just was too late at that point," safety Grant Delpit said. "I think it was trying to adjust to what they were doing based off of how teams try to scheme us and we just adjusted a little bit too late."Sanders said he didn't know what happened with the pinkie but eventually noticed the cut near the fingernail. He said he accepted having to finish with a small bandage and wouldn't have played if "I couldn't throw." He entered having completed 52.2 percent and was determined to improve that number.Browns QB Shedeur Sanders on getting more completions today. pic.twitter.com/X6PhdGnEfk— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) December 21, 2025https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"It's getting to the checkdowns," Sanders said. "When you see it, pull it, take it. Playing in rhythm, all those different things I learned and I proved to myself, I can do that."And as the game goes on and as time goes on, you're going to be able to chop it down, you're going to be able to move the ball, keep getting completions. So it was just a mentality."He has two more games to keep improving and try to prove to the organization he deserves to be the starter next season.The post Bills 23, Browns 20: Myles Garrett doesn't get record and Cleveland can't pull off upset first appeared on BrownsZone with Scott Petrak.