Cleveland Browns vs. San Francisco 49ers: 2003 Week 3 Recap

Game story

In Week 3 of the 2003 NFL season on 2003-09-21, the Cleveland Browns took care of business against the San Francisco 49ers, pulling away with a 13–12 final that came down to the wire.

The highest-scoring period was Q4 with 16 combined points — the stretch that most shaped the final margin.

K. Holcomb (Cleveland Browns) paced the passing game, with +10.78 total EPA.

On the individual side, K. Johnson (Cleveland Browns) delivered the top overall EPA impact at +11.19 — the clearest player-of-the-game signal on the analytics sheet.

The momentum swing (+26.9% win probability) landed in the fourth quarter when Cleveland Browns changed the game: (:34) (Shotgun) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 11 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Line score

Final score and points by quarter.

Stars of the game

Top performers by total expected points added (EPA) across passing, rushing, and receiving.

1. 1 K. Johnson · Cleveland Browns · Receiving · +11.19 total EPA · 11 snaps · +1.02 EPA/play
2. 2 K. Holcomb · Cleveland Browns · Passing · +10.78 total EPA · 45 snaps · +0.24 EPA/play
3. 3 A. Davis · Cleveland Browns · Receiving · +7.58 total EPA · 5 snaps · +1.52 EPA/play
4. 4 Q. Morgan · Cleveland Browns · Receiving · +3.75 total EPA · 2 snaps · +1.87 EPA/play
5. 5 T. Owens · San Francisco 49ers · Receiving · +3.37 total EPA · 8 snaps · +0.42 EPA/play
6. 6 T. Streets · San Francisco 49ers · Receiving · +3.25 total EPA · 3 snaps · +1.08 EPA/play
7. 7 J. Garcia · San Francisco 49ers · Passing · +2.37 total EPA · 37 snaps · +0.06 EPA/play
8. 8 S. Heiden · Cleveland Browns · Receiving · +1.80 total EPA · 3 snaps · +0.60 EPA/play

Player of the game

FantasyHQ analytics player-of-the-game pick based on total EPA and signature plays.

Who scored touchdowns and field goals

Every touchdown and field goal with the player named in official play-by-play.

Touchdowns

• Cleveland Browns — A. Davis (K. Holcomb pass) (Q4 10:47)
• Cleveland Browns — A. Davis (K. Holcomb pass) (Q4 0:34)

Field goals

• San Francisco 49ers — O. Pochman (Q2 43:40)
• San Francisco 49ers — O. Pochman (Q2 30:04)
• San Francisco 49ers — O. Pochman (Q3 24:18)
• San Francisco 49ers — O. Pochman (Q4 15:00)

How it unfolded, quarter by quarter

A quarter-by-quarter recap built from live scoring plays and play descriptions.

The second quarter: San Francisco 49ers won the period 6–0. San Francisco 49ers connected on a field goal from the CLE 20 (Q2 43:40) — (13:40) 11-O.Pochman 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur.; San Francisco 49ers connected on a field goal from the CLE 26 (Q2 30:04) — (:04) 11-O.Pochman 44 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur..

The third quarter: San Francisco 49ers won the period 3–0. San Francisco 49ers connected on a field goal from the CLE 28 (Q3 24:18) — (9:18) 11-O.Pochman 46 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur..

The fourth quarter: Cleveland Browns won the period 13–3. San Francisco 49ers connected on a field goal from the CLE 18 (Q4 15:00) — (15:00) 11-O.Pochman 36 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur.; Cleveland Browns found the end zone from the SF 2 (Q4 10:47) — (10:47) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Penalty on SF-98-J.Peterson, Defensive Offside, declined.; Cleveland Browns added 1 points from the SF 2 (Q4 10:42) — 4-P.Dawson extra point is GOOD, Center-64-R.Pontbriand, Holder-17-C.Gardocki.; Cleveland Browns found the end zone from the SF 11 (Q4 0:34) — (:34) (Shotgun) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 11 yards, TOUCHDOWN..

Turning points

Plays that moved win probability the most — the swings that decided the game.

• Cleveland Browns (Q4 0:34) — (:34) (Shotgun) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 11 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +26.9% · EPA +3.66]
• Cleveland Browns (Q4 0:49) — (:49) (Shotgun) 50-J.Faine to SF 30 for no gain. FUMBLES, recovered by CLE-10-K.Holcomb at SF 30. 10-K.Holcomb pass to 85-K.Johnson ran ob at SF 11 for 19 yards (29-A.Plummer). K.Holcomb recovered low [WPA +18.2% · EPA +1.60]
• San Francisco 49ers (Q4 0:07) — (:07) (Shotgun) 5-J.Garcia pass intended for 81-T.Owens INTERCEPTED by 37-A.Henry at SF 46. 37-A.Henry to SF 27 for 19 yards (62-J.Newberry). [WPA -17.7% · EPA +0.11]
• San Francisco 49ers (Q1 46:49) — (1:49) 4-B.LaFleur punts 49 yards to CLE 30, Center-86-B.Jennings. 87-A.Davis to CLE 37 for 7 yards (35-D.Carpenter). FUMBLES (35-D.Carpenter), RECOVERED by SF-83-A.Battle at CLE 37. 83-A.Battle to CL [WPA +15.5% · EPA +5.24]
• San Francisco 49ers (Q1 51:35) — (6:35) 40-F.Beasley up the middle to CLE 1 for no gain (99-O.Roye). Play Challenged by SF and Upheld. (Timeout #1 by SF at 06:21.) [WPA -9.3% · EPA -3.21]

Impact plays

Highest expected-points added snaps that flipped field position and scoring chances.

• San Francisco 49ers (Q1 46:49) — (1:49) 4-B.LaFleur punts 49 yards to CLE 30, Center-86-B.Jennings. 87-A.Davis to CLE 37 for 7 yards (35-D.Carpenter). FUMBLES (35-D.Carpenter), RECOVERED by SF-83-A.Battle at CLE 37. 83-A.Battle to CL [WPA +15.5% · EPA +5.24]
• Cleveland Browns (Q4 0:34) — (:34) (Shotgun) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 11 yards, TOUCHDOWN. [WPA +26.9% · EPA +3.66]
• Cleveland Browns (Q4 7:35) — (7:35) 10-K.Holcomb pass intended for 30-J.White INTERCEPTED by 98-J.Peterson at SF 45. 98-J.Peterson to SF 45 for no gain (30-J.White). [WPA -9.3% · EPA -3.57]
• Cleveland Browns (Q3 20:12) — (5:12) 4-P.Dawson 48 yard field goal is No Good, Wide Right, Center-64-R.Pontbriand, Holder-17-C.Gardocki. [WPA -4.2% · EPA -3.24]

Quarterback report card

K.Holcomb led all passers in efficiency for Cleveland Browns, setting the tone in the passing game according to FantasyHQ analytics.

• K.Holcomb (Cleveland Browns) · 45 dropbacks · 55.6% completion · +0.24 EPA/play · +10.78 total EPA
• J.Garcia (San Francisco 49ers) · 37 dropbacks · 56.8% completion · +0.06 EPA/play · +2.37 total EPA

Team stats comparison

Side-by-side offensive and defensive efficiency from FantasyHQ analytics.

By the numbers

Both offenses finished within striking distance on EPA per play (Cleveland Browns +0.07, San Francisco 49ers +0.04) — a true toss-up on the analytics sheet.

• Cleveland Browns: 8 drives, +5.61 total EPA, 2 scoring drives
• San Francisco 49ers: 10 drives, +2.95 total EPA, 4 scoring drives

Key takeaways

What to remember for fantasy research, film review, and follow-up box score digging.

• Cleveland Browns leaves with the win and the better postgame narrative for Week-to-week momentum.
• One-score margin — fantasy managers should double-check garbage-time stats before drawing conclusions.
• K. Johnson (Cleveland Browns) is the first name to pull up for highlight reels and prop-retrospective research.

Every scoring play

Chronological scoring with field position and full play-by-play context.

1. San Francisco 49ers FG (+3) — Q2 43:40 · CLE 20 · Score 0-3
   (13:40) 11-O.Pochman 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur.
2. San Francisco 49ers FG (+3) — Q2 30:04 · CLE 26 · Score 0-6
   (:04) 11-O.Pochman 44 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur.
3. San Francisco 49ers FG (+3) — Q3 24:18 · CLE 28 · Score 0-9
   (9:18) 11-O.Pochman 46 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur.
4. San Francisco 49ers FG (+3) — Q4 15:00 · CLE 18 · Score 0-12
   (15:00) 11-O.Pochman 36 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-86-B.Jennings, Holder-4-B.LaFleur.
5. Cleveland Browns TD (+6) — Q4 10:47 · SF 2 · Score 6-12
   (10:47) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Penalty on SF-98-J.Peterson, Defensive Offside, declined.
6. Cleveland Browns XP (+1) — Q4 10:42 · SF 2 · Score 7-12
   4-P.Dawson extra point is GOOD, Center-64-R.Pontbriand, Holder-17-C.Gardocki.
7. Cleveland Browns TD (+6) — Q4 0:34 · SF 11 · Score 13-12
   (:34) (Shotgun) 10-K.Holcomb pass to 87-A.Davis for 11 yards, TOUCHDOWN.