Browns Cut Down Bucs at the Pass

Ray Perkins figures six touchdowns ought to be enough to win any game. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, however, scored only four of them for themselves.

Vinny Testaverde threw four interceptions and Cleveland’s Felix Wright and Thane Gash returned two of them for touchdowns on successive plays Sunday in the Cleveland Browns’ 42-31 victory over the Bucs.

“Our offense scored 52 points, but only 31 counted for us,” said Perkins, who also watched Frank Minnifield intercept Testaverde and return it 25 yards to set up one of Bernie Kosar’s three touchdown passes.

Wright picked off a tipped pass intended for Danny Peebles and ran it back 27 yards for a touchdown midway through the second quarter. Gash stepped in front of Mark Carrier on the next play from scrimmage and scored on a 15-yard return for a 28-7 advantage 19 seconds later.

The runbacks gave the Browns a commanding lead but some of the energy from the two-touchdown surge was sapped on Tampa Bay’s next possession when Gash was injured defending a pass thrown into the Cleveland end zone.

Gash, who lunged toward Bruce Hill in an effort to break up the incomplete pass, landed on his head and stayed on the ground for several minutes receiving medical attention. He was carried by stretcher to the locker room where X-rays were taken of his neck.

The results of the tests were “favorable,” the team announced, and the second-year safety watched the second half from the sideline wearing a neck brace. His replacement, Robert Lyons, had the fourth interception of Testaverde.

“I lost my balance and landed on my head,” Gash said. “It was pretty scary at the time. It still hurts, but I’m hoping it will clear up in a couple of days.”

The victory was the third straight for Cleveland (6-3), which was outgained 398 yards to 271. The Bucs are now 3-6.