Jets blow big lead to hand Browns first victory since 2016

CLEVELAND — The Jets got burned by the Baker.

Browns rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield came off the bench Thursday night to hand the Jets and their rookie quarterback Sam Darnold a stunning, epic 21-17 loss that could linger for a while.

The Jets blew a 14-point lead and now have the indignity of losing to the Browns, whose last win came on Dec. 24, 2016. The Browns entered the game 1-35-1 in their last 37 games, but they left as victors.

“It’s a tough pill to swallow,” Jets cornerback Morris Claiborne said. “It’s definitely a tough pill to swallow. You don’t want to have your name on the side of that as a loss, knowing the history and all that.”

Mayfield led the Browns to two second-half touchdowns to overtake the Jets, who fell to 1-2 this season. The Jets had a 17-14 lead in the fourth quarter when Mayfield led the Browns on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Carlos Hyde scoring a 1-yard touchdown with 2:04 left in the game. The touchdown sent the city of Cleveland into a celebration and the Jets to the losers’ column.

It was a shocking collapse by the Jets and reminiscent of the way they lost games last year. They were supposed to be over the “we didn’t finish” hump, but there they were in the fourth quarter watching Mayfield and the Browns slice them up. Before Thursday night, the Browns were 1-72-1 since 2008 when trailing by at least 14 points, according to ESPN Stats and Info.

“I told the team that we lost our composure and we should be pissed off up until we play the game next weekend,” Jets coach Todd Bowles said. “That’s the way it’s going to be. We’ll get back. We’re going to have a good football team, and we’ll get back to work on Monday and we’ll get ready for Jacksonville.”

Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft this year, came off the bench late in the second quarter and immediately energized the Browns and the crowd at FirstEnergy Stadium. He finished the night 17-of-23 for 201 yards. He did not throw a touchdown, but it felt like he threw lightning bolts.

Before Mayfield entered the game, the Jets defense was dominating. Browns starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor had just 19 yards passing on 14 attempts and had been sacked three times. The last sack came from Jets linebacker Avery Williamson and knocked Taylor out of the game with a concussion.

Mayfield took over for the final series of the first half and led the Browns to a field goal, cutting the Jets’ lead to 14-3. In the second half, he took over the game and moved the Browns up and down the field.

He outplayed Jets rookie quarterback Sam Darnold, who went two picks after Mayfield in the draft. Darnold finished the game 15-of-31 for 169 yards and two interceptions. The interceptions both came in the fourth quarter after the Browns took the lead.

“I felt really comfortable throughout the whole game,” Darnold said. “I just made stupid mistakes in the fourth quarter and some missed opportunities throughout the whole game. I just have to play better, and that’s on me.”

The Jets hurt themselves with dumb penalties again, something that has been a bugaboo of this team for years now. Isaiah Crowell had the most idiotic penalty of the night for acting like he was wiping his butt with the football after his second touchdown of the game. But Morris Claiborne had the most costly penalty of the night.

The Browns fans were waiting for a reason to cheer all night and FirstEnergy Stadium exploded late in the third quarter when the Browns tied the game at 14-14 on a dramatic two-point conversion that reminded everyone of last year’s Super Bowl.

It was set up by a nice drive by the Browns to march down the field. Jarvis Landry made a remarkable catch at the Jets’ 1-yard line, going over safety Doug Middleton to make the catch. Carlos Hyde then plunged in for the 1-yard touchdown to make it 14-12.

The Browns went for a two-point try to tie the game. The Jets sacked Mayfield, seemingly getting out of it with the lead secure. But Claiborne was called for holding and the Browns were called for holding, offsetting penalties resulting in another two-point try. On this one, the Browns ran a trick play with a direct snap to running back Duke Johnson, who then flipped it to Landry, who threw a pass to Mayfield in the end zone to tie the game. It was the same play the Eagles ran in the Super Bowl last year, known by them as the “Philly Special.”

“You don’t want to see that happen, especially when you get a penalty,” Claiborne said. “We stopped them, so we were getting off the field and all that brought it back up. I know, as a veteran, I can’t do that. I ain’t trying to go out there and do that. I’m trying to cover this man so he won’t catch the ball. Sometimes those things happen. I’m a man and I eat that.”

The Jets would regain the lead on a 28-yard field goal from Jason Myers with 8:56 left in the game, but Mayfield’s magic and some dumb football got them in the end.

“It’s inexcusable on a few penalties we had,” Bowles said. “We gave them life before the half. We had two of them. We had one there on the two-point conversion that we had no business having, and we let them back in the game with some key penalties and it cost us. We lost our composure.”