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CLEVELAND, Ohio – Baker Mayfield could not stand to see rookie Greg Joseph try his shot at 37 yards in overtime.
"I turned around at the last second and saw that it was pretty low," said Mayfield, "It was not a pretty kick, but it brought it back. Nor was it a great victory, but it matters. "
Mayfield, who earned his first career win in his first start at FirstEnergy Stadium, had every reason to be nervous. Ravens' safety Tony Jefferson touched the ball and he barely hit the crossbar with two seconds left to defeat the Ravens by 12-9.
"When you hear the sound of your foot and hear a fast [thud] after, obviously, that's not always the best result, "said Joseph. "It was great to see him go by and hear the fans explode."
It was the Browns' third game in overtime this season, but the first that they won. They tied the Steelers and lost to the Raiders.
"I think we like the dramatic situation," said coach Hue Jackson, who won his first AFC North game after a 0-12-1 record. "It's safe, three overtime games in five games I've never seen before, this football team is going to be fighting, they're going to play, we're not doing anything perfect, even if they do imagination, but they work hard, they become something.
The win improves the Browns to 2-2-1 and leaves the Ravens at 3-2. He also ended the Browns 18-game losing streak in the division and scored only the third time in 21 games lost by the Ravens against the Browns.
It also means that they are undefeated in the north of the AFC, which is now on maximum alert for the Browns.
"They should have known since the first game," said running back Carlos Hyde (17 runs, 63 yards). "We're not kidding, we're real here, we work hard, we come to play every Sunday, take the light if you want."
The Ravens, for example, will certainly not do it.
They arrived with No. 2 defense in the NFL, a defense that recruits and spits out recruits. Mayfield had 342 passing yards, second in front of a Browns rookie. Upon arrival, the Ravens were 15-5 against the QB recruits since 2008, including 7-0 against the Browns.
"It's the first time I've heard about it," says Mayfield nonchalantly.
Mayfield is "a beast" and "a different race" in the 12-9 win over the Ravens
The Ravens offense was 5th in the NFL with 30.8 points per game and only 9 points against the Browns, who kept them 4-16 of 16 in third place and forced two more orders for a total of 15 The series of 13 consecutive Ravens games with at least 20 points has been broken.
The Browns won the match because Mayfield (25 of 43 of 342 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 81.7) managed a clutch in overtime, cornerback Denzel Ward blocked a field and was intercepted. Joseph defeated one missed an extra point and a failed 55-yard goal-scoring attempt at the end of the penalty period to win the game, albeit only slightly.
Finally, special teams won a game for the Browns instead of losing it.
But that would not have been possible without the never-spoken attitude of Mayfield, who was back almost literally against the wall before taking away some of Mayfield's magic for which he made himself known.
With 2:57 remaining in overtime and the score tied at 9, Mayfield took over at 16 in his third and probably the last chance to win. In the first game, receiver Rod Streater lost 11 yards on a double-setback to put Mayfield in second place and 21 out of 5.
"We thought, do not give up a security bag for security right here," said Bitonio.
But the elusive Mayfield scored 13 yards at 18 yards. He faced a critical third and critical. To avoid spoiling, one of his favorite targets in Rashard Higgins was out of the game with a knee injury. Turning right to avoid Terrell Suggs, Mayfield hit Derrick Willies, a non-rookie receiver, with a short pass to the right, and he ran 39 yards at Baltimore 43.
"He's a beast," said Hyde about Mayfield who won second place and 21 out of 21. "Easy, it's a beast."
Duke Johnson, underused, took over and ran for 15, 5, and 4 yards until the 19th at Baltimore. When Joseph kicked off, the FirstEnergy stadium broke out amidst applause, hugs, high-five, and spilled beer, as when Mayfield came out the bench to beat the Jets in the third week.
"I have not seen him for a ton, but there's just something about this young man," Jackson says. "He has a sensation, he does not blink at situations or opportunities, something may have gone wrong before, and it's the water that comes back to him from the duck. next piece He's ready, "Give me the next piece and let's go in. It's a good quality to have, it does a good job for us."
Mayfield was eliminated in his fourth game of the match. The afternoon announced long, but the defense forced the Ravens to score a goal, then Ward prevented them from scoring again in the first half with his interception at the 3-yard line and his cash stuck for 48 yards over the break in the half. The Browns led 6-3 at halftime over Mayfield's 19-yard pass to Higgins after Joseph missed the extra point.
"He's just making plays," said Joel Bitonio about Mayfield. "He is calm, he is gathered, no matter what happens, a pick, a breakaway, an interception, he is ready to play the next piece, he has done it all year and we hope that it will do it a lot longer.Many times.You hear the crowd and you think that it is falling.It goes out and plays a play and throws the ball somewhere or s & # 39; He's just a baseball player. "
But the victory may not have been possible without Ward's interception and his blocking of the ground. It was his third choice. He also broke three assists, including one that allowed the Raven not to be on the field in their first game. Largely thanks to Ward, Flacco (29 out of 56 for 298 yards) did not get any TD and INT at 60.0. He was 14th in the NFL at 96.6%. Flacco also lost for the third time against the Browns in 20 games.
"(Ward) was everywhere," Garrett said. "He had a match like he did in the first game of the season, where he was a peddler and always on top of the guys, we saw that in practice and we saw his potential Now he lives up to his abilities. "
In three appearances, Mayfield concocted an impending victory over the Jets, almost defeated the OT Raiders and defeated the Ravens.
"Be very proud of this, which shows that we are starting to change the culture here," said Mayfield. "These guys thought very early in the past that when something bad happens, then you're kind of in the tank a little bit, lowering your head, but we have a team that's starting to believe in themselves and Rightly so, it was great for us. "
Next
The Browns welcome the Chargers Sunday at 13h.
Jackson was asked if Sunday's win sent a message to the AFC North to announce the return of the Browns.
"We'll just keep our heads down and keep working," Jackson said. "We have a great game here next week at home, and that's all that matters to us."
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