Monday Night Football: Browns Hand Jets Second Ugly Home Loss in a Row

Cleveland Browns 23 

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New York Jets 3 

Well, the Jets made some changes in the offseason, which included changing their uniforms. Unfortunately, the results in terms of wins and losses is still pretty much the same. They just look better while losing.  

Ah, yes, the Jets looked miserable once again. Last weekend, they had run onto the field in a burst of energy and enthusiasm, and the fired up home crowd matched their positivity. And everything looked great early on, when the Jets took a solid 16-0 lead against division rivals, the Buffalo Bills. So, Gang Green had those bright, shiny green helmet and uniforms, and were looking good in almost every way at that point in the game.  

Since then, however, it has gotten very ugly once again.  

Yes, the Bills came storming back from that 16-point deficit to pull off a come from behind win to start off the season in great fashion, with a comeback win on the road against a divisional rival. It came at the expense of New York.  

Now, the Jets did not bother taking any kind of a lead in a fairly well anticipated Monday Night match-up against Cleveland. The Browns effectively dominated the Jets from the start, and had a convincing 16-3 lead by halftime. In the end, Cleveland took the game, 23-3, earning their first win of the season against the same team that they got their first win of the season last year, as well: the Jets, of course.  

Baker Mayfield completed 19 of 35 passes for 325 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. Former Giant Odell Beckham, Jr., caught six passes for 161 yards and one touchdown. He also broke free at one point for an 89-yard touchdown, a new career-high. Nick Chubb was a fairly solid presence on the ground for the Browns, accumulating 62 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries.  

Jets quarterbacks struggled mightily by comparison. Luke Falk completed 20 of 25 passes for 198 yards, with no touchdowns and no interceptions. He replaced Trevor Siemian, who went down with an ankle injury that appeared more serious at the time. He will be sidelined for a while, surely, although he completed 3 of 6 passes for 3 yards before going out of the game. Le’Veon Bell ran for 68 yards on 21 carries, while Ty Montgomery added 25 yards on three carries. Bell also was a factor receiving, as he caught 10 passes for 61 yards. Hardly a brilliant day on offense for New York, who managed to produce only a field goal to show for their efforts.  

Now, the Jets are 0-2, and tied with Miami for last place in the AFC East. Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots are both 2-0, and appear to be on their way to a two-team race for the divisional title and the playoffs.  

For Cleveland, this was vindication after a terrible start with a blowout loss at home to the Tennessee Titans. The offense did not look great or explosive last night, but they more than got the job done to earn a convincing win. They needed this win after the loss last week, and they have a tough game next week when they host the defending NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams, before heading off to Baltimore and then San Francisco, followed by a home game against Seattle. Then, they head off to New England to take on the Patriots. With a start to a schedule like that, the Browns clearly needed this win.  

On the other side, the Jets now have to be very concerned with the way that this season has started. They are 0-2, averaging less than 10 points per game and having allowed 39 points in the last six quarters, being thoroughly dominated at home against two different teams in the last six quarters. Now, they will head up to Foxboro for a game against New England, the defending champions, and a team that probably could hardly be hotter. Unless they pull something truly remarkable off, Gang Green is very close to starting the season off with a miserable 0-3 mark, which does not bode well for the remainder of the season.