Baker Mayfield makes a phenomenal play in OT and the Browns have two (!!!) wins

Frank Schwab
·NFL writer

The Cleveland Browns looked terrible on offense for most of Sunday, but maybe rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield just has a knack for making a play when his team absolutely needs it.

When the Baltimore Ravens tied an ugly game 9-9 in the final minute and the Browns missed a kick at the end of regulation to win it, it looked like another chapter of the same old Browns story. Cleveland’s defense played great but the offense did very little and the special teams missed key kicks, again. It looked like a 9-9 tie was coming.

This might not be the same old Browns though. Mayfield led a drive late in overtime, as he did late in regulation. He hit a massive third-down play to get the Browns in position for the win. And finally, their kicker came through. With two seconds left, Greg Joseph barely made the game-winning 37-yard field goal. The low kick squeezed through the upright by inches.

The Browns won 12-9 and while it wasn’t pretty, it was a huge victory for a team that hasn’t had many the past few seasons.

Baker Mayfield led his second win as Browns quarterback, in overtime against the Ravens. (AP)
Baker Mayfield led his second win as Browns quarterback, in overtime against the Ravens. (AP)

Baker Mayfield makes a huge play

Mayfield was flustered by the Ravens’ pass defense most of the day. That’s understandable. Baltimore did the same thing to Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers last week.

But Mayfield kept coming back. He almost set up the Browns for a game-winning field goal at the end of regulation, but Joseph missed a 55-yarder. It wasn’t the first time the Browns had kicking issues this season.

But Mayfield made the type of play late in overtime that shows why he was the first pick of the draft.

Backed up at Cleveland’s 18-yard line and facing third-and-8, Mayfield dodged the rush. He bought enough time to find Derrick Willies downfield, and squeezed a throw just past the defender. Willies turned and ran for 39 yards. Willies, who went undrafted earlier this year, never had an NFL catch before Sunday. He’ll remember that one well, as will all Browns fans.

The Browns are back to .500

After that great pass from Mayfield got the Browns in a position to start thinking about a field goal, they ran three times for 24 yards. It was still a nervous kick given how shaky Joseph was, and his winning kick wasn’t a boomer. But it snuck through.

The Browns are 2-2-1 and got a huge win over a Ravens team that has been one of the division’s best teams for many years. It wasn’t pretty, of course. But Mayfield found a way when the Browns needed it most.

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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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