It was 30-17 with 1:33 left in the fourth quarter.

In no conceivable universe did the New York Jets have the ability to mount a comeback, ESPECIALLY when they had zero timeouts remaining. But a serious of mistakes from the Cleveland Browns, and a special teams miscue left the door wide open for Gang Green.

Jets Takeoff in Final 2 Minutes

If you go back to the Full Press Jets Twitter, I was going absolutely ballistic as Cleveland marched down the field in the closing minutes of the games. In my mind, it was a classic deterioration from the defense as I’ve become so toxically accustomed to. Nick Chubb extended the lead on a 12-yard touchdown run with 1:55 left in the fourth quarter.

“Nick Chubb seals the win for the Browns with a 12 yard TD run! CLE 30-17 with 1:55 left 4Q! Celebrate with us next on the exclusive postgame show!”- 92.3 The Fan via Twitter (This Tweet has since been deleted.)

This did, however, give New York the ball back. Shortly after, Joe Flacco found Corey Davis wide open on a busted coverage for a walk-in touchdown. There was some level of miscommunication between star cornerback Denzel Ward and safety Grant Delpit, as both players could be seen barely jogging after Davis.

Special Teams Matters

Of course, at this point the only reason the Jets are down 6, not 7, is because Cleveland kicker Cade York missed the extra-point on the Nick Chubb run. Braden Mann, who has been in New York hot water for his struggles in the punting world, lined up to execute an onside kick. 

There’s plenty of different numbers on the NFL’s onside kick recovery percentage, but they all float around 10%. And somehow, through whatever miracle, Will Parks who had previously been released after training camp, obliterated Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper, and special teams captain Justin Hardee recovered the onside kick.

Special Teams matters, folks.

You know how I know that? Earlier in the game, Braden Mann threw a 17-yard completion to convert a fake punt on 4th down. Mann had a 20-yard punt last week against Baltimore, and this week might have a shot at AFC Special Teams Player of the Week.

Garrett Freaking Wilson.

The rookie receiver out of Ohio State had himself a debut game. 8 receptions, 102 yards, and two touchdowns: including the game-winner. There’s not much else to say. The kid came in clutch. 

But all of this isn’t without critique we seriously need to consider.

Defense Struggles Again

Objectively, the New York Jets did not win this game. Cleveland completely blew it in every facet possible. With no timeouts left, they could have knelt it and walked away with the win. But, the team got greedy with the final Chubb score.

In the pregame report, I said the Jets would need to shut Chubb down. And in a way they did: he took 17 carries for only 87 yards. But he also found the endzone 3 times. In the same report, I also said the Jets couldn’t let Jacoby Brissett beat them. He went 22/27 for 229 yards and a touchdown.

The defense allowed 184 total rushing yards, 229 yards in the air, and nearly 30 first downs. They are certainly lucky to have escaped Cleveland with a win. Again, if Brissett kneels the ball down, the Jets fall to 0-2.

But they didn’t.

The Jets are .500. The 13-straight September losses streak is snapped. Wins are wins, and you take them as you get them in the NFL. Up next, the Cincinnati Bengals are coming to town. The Super Bowl runner ups have had a difficult start to the season and will be looking to get on track, fueled by the humiliating loss they took last week.

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!