CLEVELAND (AP) — If NFL quarterback wasn't his chosen career, Carson Palmer may have been a strong trial lawyer.

He certainly made a convincing argument to his coach Sunday.

Palmer talked Marvin Lewis out of punting on fourth down with 1:04 left in overtime and scrambled for a crucial first down to set up Shayne Graham's 31-yard field goal on the game's final play, leading the Cincinnati Bengals to a 23-20 win over the Cleveland Browns.

With the Bengals (3-1) facing a fourth-and-11 at Cleveland's 41, Lewis wanted to be safe and punt after the Browns called timeout.

Palmer had another idea.

“I told him, 'I think we can get this,”' Palmer said. “We came here to play for a win. Nothing else.”

Dropping back to pass, Palmer surveyed the field and looked for a receiver. With none open, he tucked the ball away and took off. Not known for his speed, Palmer was still quick enough to get the yardage the Bengals would need to squeak out another win, their second straight by three points.

“Carson turned into Michael Vick and went for the long run,” Bengals offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth joked. “No one would've predicted that one.”

After the clutch scramble, Palmer completed a 9-yard pass to Brian Leonard, who then carried four yards to Cleveland's 13 before the Bengals called time with seven seconds left.

Out came Graham, who had a field goal attempt blocked in the first quarter and an extra point try batted down by Browns nose tackle Shaun Rogers in the fourth. This time, Graham's kick got past the line of scrimmage and sailed through the uprights.

But if not for Palmer's lobbying effort and Lewis' willingness to listen, the Bengals may have tied — or lost.

“That's why Marvin's great,” Palmer said. “He listens to people around him. Most coaches, once they make up their mind, they make up their mind. That's why you love playing for a guy like Marvin. Your opinion does matter.”

Defensive end Robert Geathers returned a fumble 75 yards for a TD for Cincinnati, which is tied with Baltimore for first in the AFC North. The Bengals visit the Ravens next Sunday.

After three lopsided losses under first-year coach Eric Mangini, the Browns (0-4) finally put four respectable quarters to-gether.

They needed a fifth.

Cleveland outplayed Cin-cinnati for three quarters but came up short, and the Browns had their losing streak extended to 10 games dating to last season.

“Nobody's happy,” said quarterback Derek Ander-son, who provided a huge spark in his first start this season after replacing Brady Quinn. “We lost. Nobody's happy we went to overtime and played it to the last 10 seconds.”

Palmer, who rallied the Bengals to a comeback win over the Super Bowl champion Steelers last week, finished 23 of 44 for 230 yards. He threw two TD passes to Chad Ochocinco, who had only three catches but made the most of them.

“The whole thing keeping me going is No. 9,” Ochocinco said of Palmer, who missed 12 games last season with an elbow injury. “He's so confident in the huddle. The way he has been the last two weeks is unbelievable. Especially the situations we've been in.”

Anderson completed 26 of 48 for 269 yards with one TD. He also ran for a score — and may have finally put Cleveland's quarterback controversy to rest. He found instant chemistry with rookie Mohamed Massaquoi, who had eight catches for 148 yards.

Browns running back Jerome Harrison, filling in for the injured Jamal Lewis, had 121 yards on 29 carries. Joshua Cribbs had 223 return yards, but couldn't do enough to end Cleveland's losing slide.

“There's no sugarcoating it,” said Browns wide receiver Braylon Edwards, who failed to catch a pass for the first time in 62 career games. “You can say it's something to build on, but it hurts. To have the wind knocked out of you at the end, it definitely hurts.”

Just like last week, Palmer was at his best with the stakes at their highest.

He completed two third-and-10 passes on Cincin-nati's final drive, hooking up on a 20-yarder to Chris Henry over the middle and another to Laveranues Coles. But it was his decision to take off and run for the game's biggest first down that will be remembered.

If that play had backfired, the Browns would have gotten the ball back near midfield with a chance to win. And Lewis, who has the Bengals off to their best start since 2006, would have been second-guessed for weeks.

“It's a great call because we had nothing to lose,” running back Cedric Benson said. “It's either a tie or a loss, and a tie is pretty much a loss anyway.”