The New York Jets have given their fans something to cheer for, if only for one game. The win on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns shaped up to be one of the more exciting games of the still young NFL season. After getting embarrassed in week 1 by Baltimore, the Jets were looking at a potential loss again in week 2 against a Browns team that are also looking for an identity.
The Browns definitely got it going early. Their plan seemed to feed the ball to their stars. Nick Chubb had 3 touchdowns and Kareem Hunt looked great. On the defensive side, Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney really stepped it up on the defensive side to give the Browns a considerable lead in the 4th quarter. The Jets were also enjoying some good play early on from rookie wide receiver Garrett Wilson. His routes looked smooth and quarterback Joe Flacco seemed to favor him as a target.
The comeback started to happen just after the two minute warning, as the Browns were leading by two touchdowns. The game was very much in doubt from the Jets, until Corey Davis was able to make an incredible catch for 66 yards, thrown by Flacco. The catch would result in a touchdown, trimming the Browns lead to six points with a little over a minute left in the game to play. Miraculously, the Jets recovered their onside kick having been forced to take one due to the team not having any more timeouts left in the game. The Jets knew that their only hope of staying in the game was to make big plays down the final minute stretch of the game and score a touchdown. The drive started, and Flacco remained patient with the ball. Being a veteran quarterback in this league, he knew to stay even keeled and focus on the smartest plays that would get them into position to score a touchdown. That touchdown came to fruition when Garrett Wilson caught a pass for a fifteen yard touchdown, tying the score up at 30-30. The extra point kick was hit by Jets kicker Greg Zuerlein, and the focus of the Jets then shifted to the defense as they tried to desperately cling to a one point lead.
In spectacular fashion, the defense came through as they forced an interception out of Browns Quarterback Jacoby Brisset. Ashtyn Davis was able to pick off the pass and then proceeded to slide and run out the game clock.
This was certainly a feel good win for Jets fans and an utterly disappointing loss to the Cleveland Browns faithful. The Browns had a win probability of 99.9% after Nick Chubb’s third touchdown late in the fourth. That makes this comeback one of the most statistically improbable wins in modern NFL history. To secure a close win like this without stars such as their starting quarterback Zach Wilson and star offensive lineman Machi Becton is an impressive showing for the team, and maybe signs of things to come.