Cleveland Browns: What We Learned from Cleveland's Dominant Win over 49ers

After Sunday's win over the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns fans can uncross Johnny Manziel's name on the back of their custom jerseys for the time being.

Manziel completed 21 of his 31 pass attempts for 270 yards and a touchdown in Cleveland's 24-10 victory over the 49ers on Sunday.

What was even more promising for the Browns other than putting a complete team effort together?

Manziel's reaction after his lone mistake of the day.

Late in the first half with the Browns leading, 10-3, and driving, Manziel took it back to his days in College Station, Texas, as the Heisman Trophy winner from Texas A&M and tried to break down a well-defended play.

As Manziel scrambled out of the pocket toward the left sideline, he violated one of the golden rules of quarterbacking: don't throw across your body.

Manziel's floater to the middle of the field was picked off by 49ers safety Jaquiski Tartt and returned 25 yards to help set up the next San Francisco drive before the first half ended.

While looking at the film, Manziel realized his grave mistake and took some accountability for his mistake by taking out his frustrations on a Microsoft Surface tablet when he took a look at the replay.

It wasn't the most ideal reaction for Manziel by slamming a tablet into his skull numerous times, but the reaction seemed to please Browns head coach Mike Pettine, who didn't see the reaction until after the game.

"It was a natural reaction, he knew he messed up," Pettine said. "It would bother me more if he just 'whatever' and walked off. If it's towards himself over frustration from doing something bone-headed, I have no problem with it."

Manziel has found himself in negative situations seemingly every week since the Browns drafted him, so for him to hold himself accountable for a change and recognize his mistake was one of the numerous encouraging takeaways from Sunday.

The outburst showed an encouraging sign of maturity from the Browns' new leader under center.

"This isn't freakin' Texas A&M," Manziel said of his befuddling interception, per Bud Shaw of Cleveland.com.

The 23-year-old quarterback dusted himself off after halftime and led two beautiful drives of over 75 yards, with the second one putting the Browns up, 24-3, and seemingly putting the game out of reach with about nine minutes left.

Something else that was also big for Cleveland in its 14-point win? The complement of the running game and a dominant performance from the defense.

Not only did running back Isaiah Crowell become the first 100-yard rusher in a game for the Browns this season, the defense became the first in the NFL this season to rack up nine sacks in a game.

Crowell fed off of Manziel's playmaking with 20 carries for 145 carries and two touchdowns, while the defense sacked 49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert nine times and held the 49ers to just 221 total yards on the afternoon.

For a defense that allows the second-most points per contest in the NFL, a nine-sack performance was the perfect complement to a young quarterback. The San Francisco offense mustered just 4.1 yards per play against the Browns defense.

After having his best start of the season in a win over the Chicago Bears last week, Gabbert and the San Francisco offense looked atrocious against a stern Cleveland defense.

The 49ers had three three-and-out drives to go along with just 15 first downs. Their lone touchdown drive came with under two minutes left and Cleveland leading by 21 points.

Seemingly, the only low point for the Browns in their win was the loss of wide receiver Brian Hartline, who caught eight Manziel passes for 107 yards in just three quarters.

Hartline broke his collarbone against San Francisco after a four-game stretch where he caught 30 passes for 341 yards with a merry-go-round at quarterback.

Manziel looked to Hartline often Sunday, targeting him 10 times before the injury.

It's a tough break for a Browns team that just snapped a six-game losing streak and has three games to finish the season against teams who are battling for playoff positioning—at the Seattle Seahawks, at the Kansas City Chiefs and home against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Hartline will miss the rest of this season and enter the final year of his two-year deal with the Browns with a chip on his shoulder, which could do wonders for Cleveland next season if Manziel maintains the same type of focus he showed Sunday.

"It is (a blow) because you're not just losing his production,'' Pettine said, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. "This is a guy that's a leader. He's a leader in the locker room, he's a leader in the meeting rooms, he's a leader on the practice field and then on game day, he's a guy that wants the ball."

Sunday doesn't exactly change the trajectory of this season for the Browns. They're in a three-way tie for the worst record in the NFL with the Tennessee Titans and San Diego Chargers.

The top pick in the draft next year could be in Cleveland's future with a brutal three-game slate to end the season.

But a win in the manner that the Browns picked up Sunday is encouraging for a fanbase that's desperate for success.

Not only did their hotly discussed quarterback play well in the triumph, the Browns got it done on both sides of the ball and brought some optimism for the next week.

The next check mark for the Browns should be making sure Manziel doesn't find himself as the main headline off the field, instead of for his performance on it.

Stats via NFL.com, quotes obtained from Bud Shaw and Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com

Michael Whitlow is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. You can follow Michael on Twitter: @MAWhitlow.