Editor's note: Tony Grossi covers the Cleveland Browns for ESPN 850 WKNR.

Tony Grossi’s Take on Browns’ 24-10 win over San Francisco 49ers

Offense: How do you account for 481 total yards and 28 first downs seemingly out of the blue? Yes, Johnny Manziel played well in his return to the starting lineup. Except for one ill-advised throwback to the middle of the field that was intercepted, Manziel was poised, accurate and in control of the game from beginning to end. Manziel again made plays on the run and in the pocket. But the sudden appearance of a running game – Isaiah Crowell’s 145 yards (104 coming on two runs) and two touchdowns, and Duke Johnson’s 78 – played a big role. You’ve got to give credit to Austin Pasztor, who made his first appearance at left guard in replace of injured Joel Bitonio and demoted Cam Erving. One negative was the broken collarbone suffered by receiver Brian Hartline, ending his season. Bottom line: Another step of improvement for Johnny.

Defense: The 49ers want to run the ball with a three-tight end offense, but they were down to their fourth running back and third tight end. So they put the ball in the hands of quarterback Blaine Gabbert, and the Browns made him look like, well, Blaine Gabbert. They were credited with nine sacks – rookie Nate Orchard and Armonty Bryant led with two apiece – but some of those were the result of Gabbert running out of bounds or into defenders. Gabbert wasn’t able to get the ball to his only play-makers, Torrey Smith (one catch, 17 yards) or Anquan Boldin (two, 22). The key for the defense was being good on first and second down; Gabbert converted only two of 13 third downs. Bottom line: They really needed that.

Special teams: Travis Coons had a field goal blocked for the third game in a row. His low trajectory is making anything over 40 yards a very iffy proposition. The coverage team also gave up a 36-yard punt return to Bruce Ellington. It helped make for one of punter Andy Lee’s worst net games – 27.7 yards on three punts. The 49ers did a good job bottling up Travis Benjamin (11 yards on three punt returns). Bottom line: One of the few games where two negative plays didn’t kill them.

Coaching: Maybe the strong defensive performance was a sign of group support for Mike Pettine and his embattled defensive staff. It certainly didn’t look like a team that has quit on its coach. The continual, gradual development of Johnny Manziel also is a credit to the coaches. And the awakening of the running game was a revelation. Now, how about getting Terrelle Pryor into the flow. Bottom line: Still have a chance to end on a winning streak.