Last season, Baker Mayfield was the most accurate quarterback in division one college football. Mayfield completed 70% of his passes. The Cleveland Browns chose Mayfield with the first overall pick in last year's draft. The Browns are hoping that Mayfield's success in college can translate into the NFL.
Mayfield did not play in the first two games this season. However, when starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor went out of the game with an injury in the second quarter, Mayfield was called upon to rally the Browns who were trailing the New York Jets 14-0.
On his first pass, from the Cleveland 34 yard line, Mayfield threw a perfect 10 yard pass to Jarvis Landry who was in between two defenders. Landry advanced the football to the Cleveland 49 yard line. On his next pass, Mayfield completed a pass to David Njoku at the New York 35 yard line. The pass was behind the defender, but the receiver made a good catch. The Browns were moving up the field.
On the next play, Mayfield was sacked and fumbled the football. The ball was picked up by offensive lineman Joel Bitonio and advanced for a nine yard gain. Mayfield was bailed out by Bitonio on this play. On the next play, Mayfield threw a good pass to Landry over the middle for a 16 yard gain to the Jets' 27 yard line. Then Mayfield threw a side line pass that was intended for Antonio Callaway, but broken up by Morris Clairborne. The Browns settled for a 45 yard field goal by Greg joseph to make it 14-3.
On the next drive Mayfield completed a 20 yard play action pass to Njoku. It was a quick 7 yard pass, which Njoku advanced 19 more yards. The pass showed Mayfield's quick release and decisiveness. On the next play, Mayfield showed his mobility by eluding a few pass rushers and completing a side line pass to running back Duke Johnson for a first down. The play highlighted Mayfield's escape ability and his decision making. The Browns could not score on the drive.
The Jets took over. ,Anderson made a catch but fumbled. Denzel Ward, the Browns' rookie defensive back, picked up the football and advanced it to the Jets' 7 yard line.
As the Browns took over first and goal, Mayfield made a mistake and threw the football into double coverage. The pass was almost intercepted. This pass along with his earlier fumble, showed Mayfield's inexperience. The Browns settled for a 27 yard field goal by Joseph. The Jets lead had been reduced to 14-6. The Browns were very much in the football game.
On the next possession, with the ball at the Cleveland 14 yard line, Mayfield threw a short 7 yard pass to Landry who advanced the ball 10 more yards for a first down. Mayfield did a good job of taking what the defense was giving him. He did a good job of finding an open receiver who was able to turn the play into a decent gain.
Then from the New York 30 yard line, Mayfield threw his best pass of the evening. He threw a pass to Landry who caught the ball despite being closely covered by safety Doug Middleton, whose coverage could not have been much better. The pass was thrown precisely where it needed to be thrown and it was an excellent catch by Landry. The Browns had the ball at the Jets 1 yard line. From the one yard line, running back Carlos Hyde scored a touchdown.
On the two point conversion, the ball was snapped to running back Johnson, who flipped the ball to Landry who passed the ball to Mayfield for a two point conversion. The game was tied at 14-14.
In the 4th quarter, the Jets had the ball at their own 35 yard line when running back Bilal Powell ran for a 20 yard gain. After two plays, the Jets faced 3rd and 10. Darnold completed a 13 yard pass to Jeron Kearse to give the Jets a first down. On 3rd and 7, the Jets once again got a first down when Darnold completed a pass to Quincy Enunwa The drive stalled from there, and Mike Nugent kicked a 28 yard field goal to give the Jets a 17-14 lead. The Browns would once again have to come back if they wanted to get their first win of the season and their second win in 34 games.
On their next possession, the Browns had the ball on their own 25 yard line. On second and 10 Nick Chubbs ran 10 yards for a first down. Later in the drive, with the ball at their own 45 yard line, Nick Chubbs ran ten yards for the first down. Then Mayfield completed a 15 yard pass to Duke Johnson to get the ball to the Jets 45 yard line. Then, on first and ten, Mayfield completed a 20 yard pass to Rashad Higgins. The pass was behind Higgins, but he made a good catch.
With the ball at the Jets 25 yard line, Mayfield completed a pass to Antonio Calloway for a first down. Then Mayfield completed a pass over the middle to Landry. The Browns had the ball first and goal from the Jets 7 yard line. Chubbs carried the ball to the New York one yard line. From there, Hyde scored on a touchdown run. After the extra point, the Browns lead 21-17.
With under two minutes remaining, the Browns intercepted a Darnold pass. The Browns held on for the first victory of the season and their second win in thirty four games.
On the evening, Mayfield finished 17-23 for 201 yards. He threw no touchdowns and no interceptions. Mayfield's debut was efficient. He took care of the football, except for his one fumble which was recovered by his teammate. Mayfield can build on his performance this weekend against the Oakland Raiders.
After the victory, in an interview with the NFL Network, Mayfield said "We finally put the pieces together a little bit." Baker showed respect for the Cleveland fans when he said, "This crowd deserved to see that first win at home." Mayfield said that he was not thinking about the other Browns quarterbacks who had struggled in the past. Mayfield said "The past is the past. It's time to hit the reset button."
Additionally, he said that he sensed the energy of the home crowd when he entered the game. Mayfield said that the energy of the fans "builds confidence in us." Mayfield gave credit to this teammates and said "I did not do this by myself. I had a lot of guys play well around me."
Mayfield's performance gave the Browns hope for the future. However, there are other young players that give the Browns reason to hope as well.
Landry is a go to receiver what will help to make Cleveland's offense stronger. After spending 5 years in Miami, Landry signed a free agent contract with Cleveland. So far, he looks to be a good addition to the Browns' offense. He should help Mayfield get acclimated to the NFL. Landry has enough speed to get open and he has good catching ability. Landry lead the NFL with 112 receptions last season.In 2015, he was targeted a league high 166 times by Dolphins' quarterbacks. Landry gives Mayfield the reliable receiver that a rookie quarterback needs.
Hyde is 8th in the NFL in rushing with 203 yards. He provides the Browns with a reliable running back who can take some pressure off of Mayfield. Hyde spent four seasons with San Francisco. Though Hyde never rushed for 1,000 yards, he did rush for 988 yards in 2016 and 940 yards in 2017. Hyde is strong near the goal line and should be able to score some rushing touchdowns this season.
Cleveland's defense is rated 13th in the NFL this year. They are giving up 19.7 points per game. Their passing defense is ranked 12th, while their rushing defense is ranked 16th. There is room for improvement. However, they are off to a decent start.
Denzel Ward may be the defensive play maker that Cleveland has been looking for. Ward has two interceptions already and he has been a force in the Cleveland secondary. Ward was taken out of Ohio State with the fourth overall pick in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft.
The Browns have one win over the past two seasons. Last year they were outscored 410-234. The previous year they were outscored 452-264. In 2016 and 2017, the Browns were not a competitive football team. However, this year they are 1-1-1 and they seem much more competitive.
The Browns have been searching for a top notch quarterback since Bernie Kosar was released form the team in the mid 1990's. They used first round draft picks on quarterbacks who did not pan out. Additionally, they did not select Jerad Goff or Carson Wentz in 2016. However, in Mayfield, the Browns may have their franchise quarterback. If they can continue to acquire talent through the draft, then the Browns can build a decent football team.
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