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ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Rams' blueprint for winning games came to life in the Edward Jones Dome Sunday. St. Louis pulled away in the second half for a 24-6 victory over the Cleveland Browns behind running back Todd Gurley and a powerful defense.
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Outrushing Cleveland 158-82, the Rams (3-3) also forced four turnovers and registered four sacks, eventually knocking out quarterback Josh McCown late in the fourth quarter with a right shoulder injury.
The Browns started nine of their 13 possessions at or inside their 20-yard line. St. Louis punter Johnny Hekker downed his first three attempts at the 8, 4 and 9, and playing a long field most of the day was too much for Cleveland to overcome.
"I think we played great," free safety Rodney McLeod said. "Giving up six points, you can't ask for much more than that."
McLeod matched the Browns' output with his first NFL touchdown, gobbling up a fumble by wide receiver Taylor Gabriel and scampering 17 yards with 11:59 left in the first quarter for the day's first points.
Cornerback Janoris Jenkins and McLeod recognized Cleveland's formation just before the snap and correctly diagnosed it would be a quick hitch.
"He got to the right spot and got his hat on the ball," McLeod said. "It was a great feeling for me. I don't think I've scored a touchdown since high school."
That would become a day-long theme -- the Browns (2-5) losing fumbles and the Rams converting them into points. Cleveland actually outgained St. Louis 364-308, but the Rams collected 17 points off turnovers.
"That's a sure-fire formula for losing games in the NFL," Browns coach Mike Pettine said. "When you turn it over four times and you commit 11 penalties on the road, it's hard to win. They're built for this environment. It was loud in here and we had to go to a silent count, but we have to find a way to function better in it."
McCown played under duress all day, taking several other hard hits in addition to the sacks. St. Louis recorded seven quarterback hurries and flushed McCown on eight of his 32 passes.
McCown finished 26 of 32 for 270 yards, but lost two fumbles before departing late in the fourth quarter with a shoulder injury that Pettine said would be further evaluated on Monday.
"Any time your quarterback leaves the game with an injury, you're going to be concerned," he said of McCown.
Gurley added to the lead that the defense helped create, rushing for his first two NFL scores to put the game away. Gurley bagged 128 yards on 19 carries, including a 48-yard jaunt early in the third quarter, for his third straight 100-yard game.
Shortly before engaging in a derogatory chant directed at Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who might move the team to Los Angeles before next season, the crowd of 51,523 chanted Gurley's name before and after his game-sealing 16-yard touchdown run with 8:11 left in the game.
"He's an animal," St. Louis quarterback Nick Foles said of Gurley.
Foles connected on 15 of 23 passes for 163 yards, including a 41-yarder to wide receiver Kenny Britt that set up Gurley's 1-yard score around left tackle at the 2:14 mark of the third quarter.
While Cleveland lost for the fourth time in five games, the Rams started a six-game stretch with an effort they hope will become the norm and not an outlier.
"You can't take any game for granted in the NFL," said defensive tackle Michael Brockers. "Every team is good, every team has talent. But there's no doubt this was a big win for us today."
NOTES: Cleveland RBs Isaiah Crowell, Duke Johnson and Robert Turbin combined for 20 yards on 13 first-half carries. ... Browns WR Andrew Hawkins (concussion) left the game in the fourth quarter and didn't return. ... St. Louis' James Laurinaitis made his 102nd straight start Sunday, the third-longest streak among NFL linebackers.
