The Cleveland Browns secured a playoff berth in a 37-20 thrashing of the New York Jets. The game was a story of two halves. The team was laser-focused heading into the prime-time game.
The Browns dominated the Jets across the board in the first half. In the second half, the team tried to secure their lead and protect their players from future injuries ahead of the playoffs.
Overall, the Browns played some of their best football on Thursday night. The offense was undefinedmore explosive than ever, generating a lot of big plays for the unit. The defense continued its domination by shutting down the Jets for most of the game. The team is playing its best football of the season right before the playoffs.
The Browns need to carry this momentum into the playoffs. The teams that win Super Bowls aren’t always the most talented. Sometimes, they’re the teams that play their best at the end of the season. Hopefully, the Browns can find themselves in that latter group as injuries have decimated a talented roster, but haven’t robbed the team of their fighting spirit.
Here are the Studs and Duds in the Browns’ win over the Jets.
Dud: Turnovers
The only dud of the game was turnovers. Despite all the improvements to the offense, they continue to play a sloppy brand of football. The Browns had five turnovers on Thursday, four of them were fumbles. Two of those fumbles were recovered by the team.
Joe Flacco was credited for two of the fumbles. One was a strip sack that he recovered. The other was a mishandled handoff between him and Jerome Ford that was recovered by Ford. Ford should’ve received the error as he took multiple steps with the ball before it dropped on the ground.
David Njoku lost a fumble when he got careless with the ball as he prepared for a hurdle. The fumble was the only blemish on his otherwise great game. Pierre Strong’s lost fumble on the Browns’ 35-yard line was the only fumble that resulted in points for the Jets. The defense did a good job preventing the Jets from scoring on most of the turnovers.
The most costly turnover was Joe Flacco’s pick-six. The play serves as a reminder that the other team gets paid too. Flacco gives his best effort to avoid the pass rusher Jermaine Johnson. Flacco gave him a pump fake and tried to sidestep him to get the pass to Njoku. Johnson bit on the pump fake but quickly got his feet back on the ground tipping the pass to himself, catching it, and running it 40 yards into the endzone. It was a great play by a former first-round pick.
Turnovers are usually death sentences for a team but the Browns have been lucky that none have been too costly. If the offense can play clean football, they’ll have a very successful playoff run.
Stud: S Ronnie Hickman Jr.
The best way to avoid the pitfalls of turnovers is for the defense to force more turnovers. Ronnie Hickman Jr. did that on Thursday recording his pick-six in the first quarter.
Hickman has constantly been around the ball in his limited playing time. Thursday night Hickman finally capitalized on an errant pass resulting in the first interception of his career.
He made plays all over the field in the primetime game. He finished the night with four tackles and a deflected pass. He was a force in all phases of the game.
Hickman has been the latest man up for the Browns. The undrafted rookie free agent has worn many hats during his short time in Cleveland. The safety has filled in for Rodney McLeod Jr., Juan Thornhill, and now Grant Delpit. The rookie continues to get better with every game he plays.
Stud: TE David Njoku
David Njoku has etched his name in the Studs list over the past month. Njoku played out of his mind in primetime. The tight end played a complete game. He was a physical force through the air as a receiver and on the ground as a blocker. His primetime performance is a reminder that he is among the best tight ends in the NFL.
Njoku had 113 yards on four completions in the first quarter. He would finish the game with two more receptions for 21 yards. Njoku’s worst play of the game was the aforementioned fumble, which swiftly ended an impressive run after the catch. Njoku makes a difficult target for defenders to tackle. He’s strong, and fast, and he’s likely to hurdle a defender if he doesn’t think he can run them over.
As the Browns shifted into a run-first mode to preserve the lead in the second half, Njoku proved his dedication to the team through his blocking. The tight end had no problem bullying defensive ends and linebackers for the rest of the night to help secure the win.
Njoku has shown he’s a selfless leader on and off the field. His passion illustrates how much the team and city mean to him. After the game, he was spotted celebrating the Browns playoff berth, with the fans and the team, bringing smiles to the faces around him. The team leader deserves a celebration after his game against the Jets.
Stud: QB Joe Flacco
Joe Flacco had an excellent game against his former team, the New York Jets. The familiarity between him, and the players and coaches is starting to pay off. Flacco looked comfortable running the offense. He looked more comfortable in the pocket. It resulted in a dynamic passing attack that couldn’t be stopped.
Flacco completed 19 passes on 28 attempts for 301 yards and two touchdowns. He amassed most of those stats in the first half of the game. The Browns did not need to pass afterward. Flacco’s only negative play was the pick-six, and again it’s more of a credit to the defender than it was an errant throw.
Flacco is excellent at escaping pressure in the pocket. The quarterback stands tall at 6-foot-6 and is a brute to take down. He uses his strength to bide time for his playmakers to get open. He did it multiple times on Thursday. Most notably, when he escaped the pocket and fired a short pass to Jerome Ford who scampered for his second receiving touchdown of the day.
Flacco’s skills and composure have been a force multiplier for a talented Browns offense. The offense will continue to get better as the trust grows between Flacco and the team. Under Flacco’s command, hopefully, the offense peaks during a game in February.
Stud: RB Jerome Ford
Jerome Ford was a stud on Thursday night against the Jets. He logged 64 yards on 12 carries, and another 57 yards on two receptions both for touchdowns. He played a complete game, excelling in all phases of the game.
The running back was phenomenal in the passing game. He established himself as a receiving threat in the offense. Stefanski isn’t afraid to call plays with him as the first read. His pass blocking has been exceptional as of late. Ford is turning into a true receiving back.
Ford had one of his better games as a runner. He looked fast as he ripped off multiple big runs. Ford still looks a little indecisive when running the ball. He breaks east to west when he sees a defender. With his combination of size, speed, and strength he should try to run through more tacklers. It’s hard to catch him in the open field when he breaks a tackle as he proved over and over again on Thursday.
Ford still has another level to unlock in his game. He’s been a boom-or-bust runner throughout the season. Every week Ford continues to get better and games like Thursday’s game give him a strong foundation to continue stacking performances together. The Browns need major contributions from the young running back during the playoffs.
