Antonio Callaway makes a catch against the Giants. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Antonio Callaway caught a pinpoint pass from Baker Mayfield at the Giants' 46-yard line on Thursday night and ... well ...

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"He's fast, man," Jarvis Landry said. "The more we can get the ball in his hands in space, he can do things like that. So we're excited."

That's the type of talent GM John Dorsey was talking about when he was asked before the game if he thought, before camp, that Callaway could work his way into the starting lineup so quickly.

"I've said all along he would have been, probably, somebody that would have been selected very high in the second round if not the first round in this draft if everything had worked itself out," Dorsey said.

That play represented everything the Browns wanted Corey Coleman to be. Coleman, of course, is in Buffalo now and Dorsey said that, had he known of Callaway's citation for marijuana possession on, say, Sunday morning, it wouldn't have necessarily changed his plans to trade Coleman.

"I base a lot of things off the talent on the field and I think we have a really nice, young group of receivers who are beginning to develop," Dorsey said, "and I think with Corey's situation, it gives him a fresh start in Buffalo to see what he can do, because, as we speak, I think there's some younger talent who can develop faster."

Reading between the lines: Dorsey sounded like he thought Coleman had plateaued, at least as a Brown, and he was more interested in the likes of Callaway.

Callaway has had quite the week and it represents the fickle nature of covering football. Tuesday afternoon it was about whether Callaway was a risk -- Did the Browns make a mistake? Friday morning, we're talking about that 54-yard touchdown catch and run and thinking about a future of Baker Mayfield-to-Callaway.

The truth lies somewhere in the middle, at least for now, and a fan base that has put up with the uncertainty of Josh Gordon for this long can handle holding its breath a little with Callaway, at least when he makes plays like that.

That's one takeaway from Thursday night's game. Here are some more as I sit at beautiful Newark Liberty International Airport at 2 a.m. waiting for my flight home.

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The difference QB play makes

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Tyrod Taylor looks downfield. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)

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We don't always appreciate it because we haven't seen it, but Thursday night was an example of what solid quarterback play can do.

It started with Tyrod Taylor staring down a blitzer and delivering a ball to Landry on the Browns' first offensive play for a 32-yard gain.

It continued with Taylor hitting tight end David Njoku on a perfect throw for the first touchdown of the night, and continued with Mayfield showing off his pocket presence, arm strength and accuracy, especially once he settled in.

"I'm being very honest with you that I think it's the quarterback play," head coach Hue Jackson said when asked if his team felt different. "I think it starts with Tyrod, I think it's our young quarterbacks, and I think it's Drew Stanton coaching his tail off. I think it's Ken Zampeze and Todd (Haley) and the rest of the offensive staff."

When the ball comes out quickly, decisively and on target, everything else simply works better.

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The Kendricks effect

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You know what play won't get talked about much? The third-and-7 with 4:47 left in the first quarter from the Giants' 39. The Browns' opening drive stalled following Landry's taunting penalty, but they were able to pin the Giants back at their own 11. New York slowly worked its way out towards midfield when this play came up.

Third-and-7 in that spot on the field -- good defenses get off the field there and kill the drive because, if they don't, now the offense is in business.

Linebacker Mychal Kendricks played that series with the first team. He replaced Christian Kirksey. Kendricks picked his way through the line -- or, more accurately, bullied his way through -- and forced Eli Manning into one of those patented Eli falling down sacks. Loss of 10 yards. Drive over. Giants punt.

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Kendricks is going to push for more and more playing time. He can have that type of impact regularly.

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The no-huddle

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Rashard Higgins and David Njoku celebrate one of Njoku's touchdown catches. (Joshua Gunter, cleveland.com)

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Immediately after that defensive series, the Browns went no-huddle. It was a predetermined move to do it on the second series, but the timing was perfect. Taylor at the helm was a big reason it worked, too.

"It's all confidence," Landry said of his quarterback. "I mentioned to these guys earlier, we spoke before the first series and then the second series to go no-huddle, he pretty much orchestrated that by himself and he made it happen."

The Browns used four plays to find the end zone, capped by a 21-yard completion to Rashard Higgins and a 36-yard touchdown to Njoku.

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The bumps ahead

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The thing about the preseason is that, when you have Taylor and Landry and a decent stable of playmakers, you should score touchdowns. If Callaway really is that talented, he should outrun defenders in the fourth quarter of a practice game. Mayfield should be able to do some damage against second-teamers -- and lower.

Just like with the solid quarterback play thing, though, we haven't seen it much here. We don't know what easy preseasons are like. Even in the magical march to 4-0 last year, it was never easy.

There are going to be challenges presented when the real games start and it might take time for this team to master them -- even more so when Mayfield finally takes the reins.

The thing to be excited about from Thursday is this: the Browns looked like a real team playing a pretend game. They actually looked like they were prepared for something bigger than just practice games.

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A bonus sixth thing we learned

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Look closely, next to the white Odell Beckham, Jr. jersey.

That, my friends, is a bona fide AC Slater football jersey.

A little bit of internet research tells me you can buy this gem on Amazon for the low, low price of $44.95.

Hey, why not buy two? I know a certain Browns reporter that wouldn't mind wearing one of those.