Make way, George Halas, there’s a coach who’s tied you.
The Patriots defeated the Browns 38-15 on Sunday, with New England having little trouble against the the team that Bill Belichick led as head coach from 1991-1995.
In many ways, that makes the milestone Belichick reached with the win that much more poetic. With his 324th victory — regular and postseason — Belichick tied George Halas at No. 2 for most wins all time by a head coach.
Belichick recorded 37 of his victories with Cleveland, the first of which coincidentally came over New England in 1991. The other 317 have come with New England since 2000.
Don Shula is No. 1 on the all-time list with 347.
This win also came with third-string quarterback Bailey Zappe starting the game and playing well. While Zappe did have a giveaway on a strip-sack, he finished 24-of-34 for 309 yards with a pair of touchdowns.
Zappe threw his first TD in the third quarter, hitting fellow rookie Tyquan Thornton for a 2-yard score. He then hit tight end Hunter Henry for a 31-yard touchdown with 5:32 left in the period.
While Browns quarterback Jacoby Brissett has mostly filled in admirably as Cleveland’s QB during Deshaun Watson’s 11-game suspension, Brissett did not play well on Sunday. He finished 21-of-45 for 266 yards with one touchdown and a pair of interceptions.
The Browns did make a fourth-quarter run, with Brissett hitting receiver Amari Cooper with a 14-yard score with just over six minutes left in the contest. But an onside kick attempt became unsuccessful when a Cleveland player touched the ball with a foot out of bounds.
Then the Browns muffed a punt, which led to Thornton’s second touchdown of the game — a 19-yard run. And Brissett fumbled on the next possession, which led to a 6-yard touchdown for running back Rhamondre Stevenson.
If there was one negative for the Patriots, it’s that kicker Nick Folk finally missed a field goal from under 50 yards. He pushed a 45-yard try wide right in the fourth quarter.
Now at 2-4, the Browns will be on the road to face the Ravens next Sunday.
The 3-3 Patriots will host the 2-4 Bears on Monday night in Week Seven.