Broadway Joe
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- Mar 19, 2019
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The Browns missed the playoffs the last time they won 10 games in a season and they will need a win in Week 17 to make sure that doesn’t happen again.
Sunday opened with a chance of clinching a Wild Card berth, but a 23-16 loss to the Jets meant that will have to wait. The Browns play the Steelers in Week 17.
The Browns dug themselves a 20-3 hole, but drew within four points after a Kareem Hunt touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. They punted after four plays on their next series and Baker Mayfield was stripped of the ball by Tarell Basham on a sack to set up a short Jets field goal.
Jets quarterback Sam Darnold gave the Browns some extra time to try for a tie by throwing an incompletion on third down rather than taking a sack. The Browns drove into Jets territory after Sam Ficken‘s kickoff went out of bounds, but Austin Hooper came up just short of a first down on third-and-10 and Mayfield fumbled while trying to sneak for a first down.
Mayfield also lost a fumble in the first half and was 28-of-53 for 285 yards on the day. The Browns were playing without their top four wide receivers because of COVID-19 protocols, which left them with just three receivers. Marvin Hall was on the 53-man roster while Ja’Marcus Bradley and Derrick Willies came up from the practice squad.
Bradley had five catches for 60 yards, but the loss of the receivers was clearly an issue for the Browns and their run game never got going to offset what was missing through the air. Credit for the latter should go to a Jets defensive line playing without Quinnen Williams as one of the league’s top rushing attacks was limited to 45 yards.
The Jets outgained them 333-299 for the game and Jamison Crowder starred on offense. He threw a 43-yard touchdown, caught a 30-yard score, and finished with seven catches for 92 yards.
Running back Frank Gore picked up 48 yards on 14 carries, which leaves him with exactly 16,000 rushing yards for his career. He’ll try to push past that mark against the Patriots next week. There’s little else for the Jets to play with as it leaves them set with the No. 2 draft pick thanks to Jacksonville’s loss to the Bears.