Johnny Manziel replaces Brian Hoyer in Browns' loss to Bills

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Once safety Da'Norris Searcy and the Buffalo Bills' defense chased Cleveland Browns starter Brian Hoyer, they weren't going to let Johnny Manziel change the outcome.

Searcy intercepted Hoyer twice, defensive end Jerry Hughes scored on an 18-yard fumble return and tackle Kyle Williams forced Manziel to throw a key incompletion in the final minutes to secure a 26-10 win over the Browns yesterday.

"It didn't change too much," Searcy said of the Bills' approach against Manziel. "Coming on the field, we knew he was in there. We just told each other to look for [bootlegs]."

Manziel entered with 12:01 left in the fourth quarter and Cleveland trailing 20-3 after Hoyer had thrown two interceptions. Manziel then capped an eight-play, 80-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown run.

It was Manziel's first appearance since Week 3, when he had a few plays. Yesterday, he ran for three yards on his first play. The rookie first-round pick then picked up his first NFL completion on the next play, a 12-yarder to Miles Austin. He finished 5-for-8 for 63 yards and rushed for 13 yards.

Coach Mike Pettine said it's too early to tell who will start against the Colts next week. "I'm not going to put it all on Brian," Pettine said of Hoyer, who has thrown six interceptions in his past three starts. "Sometimes you just need change for the sake of change. We'll scope it out to a staff decision and we'll make the evaluation."

Hoyer said this is still "my team" but acknowledged that the decision is out of his hands. "I'm never going to hang my head and feel sorry for myself," he said. "We have four games and whatever Coach decides to do, I'll be here to support this team."

It capped a tumultuous nine-day stretch for Manziel. It began with him being confronted during an altercation with an aggressive fan in the lobby of his apartment last weekend, and now there's a chance he could be in line to start.

"That's up to coach Pettine," Manziel said. "But if that is the case and my name is called, I definitely will be ready."

Neither team seemed ready early on as the Browns led 3-0 at halftime. Buffalo took control by scoring touchdowns 10 seconds apart midway through the third quarter. Kyle Orton bounced back from two interceptions by throwing a 3-yard touchdown pass to Chris Hogan. Hughes then returned Terrance West's fumble on the Browns' next play from scrimmage.

The Bills (7-5) still are very much alive in a jumbled AFC playoff picture, but the Browns (7-5) had a dent put in their playoff hopes. Cleveland trails Cincinnati (8-3-1) by 1 1/2 games in the AFC North.

The Bills were back home after a severe snowstorm forced them to relocate to Detroit, where they routed the Jets last Monday night. With temperatures in the mid-50s yesterday, there were only a few remnants of the 6-plus feet of snow that fell on the Buffalo region.

"It's great. We wanted to come out and win for the fans," Searcy said. "They weren't able to be with us on Monday night, so to have a game back in [Orchard Park] and get a win for them was good."