By Barry Wilner
The Associated Press

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - This victory meant a whole lot more than most for the Cleveland Browns. Playing four days after owner Al Lerner's death, the Browns were lethargic and mistake-prone in the first half Sunday against the New York Jets. Then, inspired by the memory of Lerner's combativeness, they rallied from an 18-point deficit for a 24-21 win.

"We as players loved Mr. Lerner and wanted to play well for him and his family," said Tim Couch, who finished 33-for-49 for 307 yards and two third-quarter touchdowns. "This was about courage and heart and it exemplified what Mr. Lerner was all about."

Maybe it also exemplified what the Browns can be all about. After Courtney Brown blocked John Hall's 44-yard field goal with 16 seconds remaining, the Browns (4-4) are in the thick of the AFC North race.

More importantly, they know they can dig themselves out of huge holes. Against Tennessee in Week 3, they scored two touchdowns in the final 21/2 minutes to force overtime, then won on a field goal by Phil Lawson.

This time, down 21-3, Couch showed some magical escapist skills on both touchdowns and a 2-point conversion, then Lawson won it with a 35-yarder with 6:27 to go.

"It says a lot about our team," said Couch, who should have silenced the jeers and doubts he's heard in Cleveland this year. "We were talking at halftime about how we were in this situation before in Tennessee and that we can do this."

They did it helped greatly by the kind of coaching confusion that marked the Jets' lowest days under former coach Rich Kotite.

After grabbing a 21-6 halftime lead, the Jets (2-5) went away from everything that worked. They appeared confused about which players belonged on the field when. They wasted three timeouts in the pivotal third quarter - one on a replay at midfield; one when they didn't have the correct defensive personnel on the field; another when Chad Pennington, after a 5-minute delay when guard Kareem McKenzie was injured, still couldn't get a play called in time.

"It's very difficult to accept," Curtis Martin said. "I came in at halftime and said, `We've got to play even better in the second half to win the game,' and we didn't."

Instead, the Browns dominated. They had the ball for 37:54 overall and outgained the Jets 93-2 in the third period, wearing down New York's undependable defense.

Couch, showing tremendous maturity and resourcefulness, shrugged off several near sacks in throwing a 5-yard TD pass to a diving Mark Campbell, then a 4-yarder to rookie Andre' Davis. And his lob under heavy pressure for the tying 2-point conversion somehow found Dennis Northcutt in the end zone.

"I saw a flash of white as I was going down and just heaved it up and let Dennis make a play," Couch said. "You have to show you have trust in your guys."

The Browns should have loads of trust in Couch after his spectacular performance Sunday. Coach Butch Davis said it was "typical Tim Couch. He has the ability to make plays in the pocket as well as scramble to keep other plays alive. Without some of the plays he made, we couldn't have won today."

Cleveland looked lost early on, perhaps distracted by Lerner's death. A businessman and native New Yorker, he brought the NFL back to Cleveland in 1999. Flags flew at half-staff at Giants Stadium, a moment of silence was held before kickoff, and the Browns will wear patches with the initials AL on them for the rest of the season.

The Jets, who had 10 points total in the first quarter of their first six games, had 14 just 9:03 into the game. Santana Moss returned a punt 63 yards for a score only 39 seconds into the game. Laveranues Coles used a brilliant spin move for a 37-yard TD, the Jets' longest pass play of the season.

New York's other top receiver, Wayne Chrebet, had an 8-yard scoring catch, and the Jets led 21-6 at halftime. But Chrebet also fumbled at the Cleveland 7.

That was it as the Jets became more and more befuddled while Cleveland staged its comeback.

Dawson also had field goals of 23 and 26 yards before Couch became unstoppable.

As Butch Davis left the field, he looked up to the sky.

"I told the football team that Al Lerner's life was about things like today," Davis said. "Perseverance, character and never ever surrendering. I know for a fact that Al is proud of the football team today."

Notes

Browns TE Mark Campbell, who had 10 receptions in seven games, made seven Sunday. ... Each team has big interceptions wiped out by penalties. New York's Ray Mickens went 58 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter, but John Abraham was offside - one of four such penalties for the Jets. Lewis Sanders' pickoff on the final series would have clinched the game, but Kevin Bentley was whistled for illegal contact. ... Chrebet fumbled for the first time since 1996 after 323 receptions without one.

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