CLEVELAND - Tampa Bay defensive tackle Gerald McCoy — never afraid to speak his mind — went out of his way to rave about Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer. Mateus Uribe Colombia Jersey .During the week, McCoy told reporters he respected Hoyer for his intelligence, athleticism and how he conducts himself on and off the field. This wasnt an act, some attempt at psyching out Hoyer. McCoy meant every word.On Sunday, McCoy said it to Hoyers face.He came up to me during the game and hes like, Hey, I meant everything I said, Hoyer said following Clevelands 22-17 victory over the Buccaneers. To know youre earning the respect around the league means a lot.And Hoyer isnt the only one getting praise.The Browns, stuck in a degrading cycle of losing for years, have the NFLs attention.They definitely know about the Cleveland Browns, said safety Tashaun Gipson, who picked up his sixth interception. They take the Browns seriously. They have no choice. You dont win five games by mistake.Hoyers 34-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Taylor Gabriel with 8:59 left gave Cleveland the lead, and the Browns confounding defence was able to protect it.Clevelands fourth victory in five games helped the Browns (5-3) surpass last years win total and gave them some momentum heading into Thursday nights matchup with AFC North-leading Cincinnati. The Browns havent been this good at the midway point since 2007, when Pro Bowl tackle Joe Thomas was a rookie.Its been a long time, Thomas said.The Browns concluded a three-game stretch against three of the NFLs weakest teams — Jacksonville, Oakland and Tampa Bay are a combined 2-23 — with two wins. They were ugly at times, and the Browns still have a lot of areas to clean up, but Cleveland teams in the past probably would have found ways to lose.Not this one. Hoyer shook off two interceptions and the Browns blocked a field goal and punt to pull out the win.For a team whos culture has been losing, I dont know if a few years ago — and I can only speak for my time here — I dont know if a Browns team wins that game, Hoyer said.The Buccaneers (1-7) have lost four straight and five games by six points or less. Coach Lovie Smith is seeing progress, but its not translating to wins.There is no doubt that we are headed in the right direction, but you could say that about four games ago, Smith said. We have to find a way to win a game.By November football, you are supposed to be playing your best football and we havent.There was little time for the Browns to celebrate. Coach Mike Pettine said he and his staff planned to grind in the office a little bit on Sunday night to prepare for the Bengals (5-2-1), who will provide a much better measuring stick than Clevelands three previous opponents.Here are five other takeaways from the Browns win over the Buccaneers:HOYERS HEART: Hoyer passed for a season-high 300 yards and stayed in after taking several hard hits. He improved to 8-3 as Clevelands starter, but not before he was booed by some Browns fans who cant let go of the thought of Johnny Manziel behind centre.Obviously, we need to play better, he said. Our fans expect more out of us, and we expect more than our fans do.HEY, ROOMIE: Bucs rookie WR Mike Evans caught a pair of 24-yard TD passes from Mike Glennon and celebrated both scores by making the money gesture made famous by his Texas A&M roommate, Manziel.Evans finished with seven catches for 124 yards, but was called for pass interference in the final two minutes, wiping out a key first down.WINNS WIN: Browns defensive end Billy Winn made the most of his first game back in several weeks. Winn blocked a field goal in the first quarter by placing his hands on two Tampa Bay lineman and leaping over them.I landed on both feet, said Winn, who had never blocked a kick before. Its one of my old skateboard moves.SUB-PAR SUB: Glennon fell to 1-4 since replacing the injured Josh McCown. Glennon made some strong throws, but missed a couple hed like to have again.The two picks in the first half were not good at all, he said. Should have been potentially two touchdowns, throws that I need to make.INJURY FRONT: Browns rookie CB Justin Gilbert took a blow to the head in the fourth quarter and was helped from the field, but the team said he did not have a concussion. DB Johnson Bademosi, one of the Browns top special teamers, sustained a concussion on a crack-back block covering a punt. Buccaneers LB Lavonte David was helped off the field after he was dropped by Browns RB Terrance West, but the team said he was not seriously injured.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Abel Aguilar Jersey . - The Washington Redskins have signed free agent offensive lineman Mike McGlynn. Jose Izquierdo Colombia Jersey . Patrik Bartosak turned away 50-of-52 shots for the Rebels (28-26-4), who halted their losing streak at seven games. Trailing 2-1 after 40 minutes of play, Feser forced overtime with his second goal of the game at 5:35 of the third period. http://www.nationalcolombiafootball.com/jose-fernando-cuadrado-colombia-jersey/ . -- Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer will be out three to six weeks with a stress fracture of the third finger of his right hand.NEW YORK, N.Y. - The Edmonton Oilers will be without defenceman Keith Aulie for the next two games.The National Hockey Leagues department of player safety announced Thursday that Aulie has been suspended for two games, without pay, for an illegal check to the head of Calgary Flames forward Matt Stajan. The incident occurred at 19:05 of the first period of Wednesdays 4-3 overtime loss tto the Flames. Miguel Borja Colombia Jersey. Aulie was assessed a match penalty on the play.Under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement and based on his average annual salary, Aulie will forfeit US$8,602.16. Aulie will miss Fridays game against Colorado and Sundays game against the New York Islanders before being eligible to return to Edmontons lineup Jan. 6 against Detroit. ' ' '