The Sports Xchange
Oct 30, 2016
CLEVELAND -- The New York Jets rallied from a 13-point halftime deficit on the road for a 31-28 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday in Cleveland.
Matt Forte ran for two second-half touchdowns and Ryan Fitzpatrick passed for a touchdown as the Jets (3-5) outscored the Browns 24-8 in the final 30 minutes.
Fitzpatrick, who completed just three passes in the first half, recovered in the second half and the embattled veteran completed 16 of 34 passes for 228 yards and the one touchdown.
Forte rushed for 82 yards on 25 carries and Quincy Enunwa caught four passes for 93 yards and a touchdown.
The Browns (0-8) remained winless after building a 20-7 lead in the first half.
The return of Josh McCown at quarterback failed to provide the spark needed for the Browns.
The Jets' comeback began Ewunwa caught a 24-yard touchdown pass from Fitzpatrick midway through the third quarter. Enunwa slipped several tackles after hauling in the pass near the 10-yard line.
Forte scored the first of is two touchdowns on a 4-yard run to give the Jets their first lead at 21-20 with 2:11 remaining in the third quarter.
After McCown, who sat out five games with a shoulder injury, missed on a deep throw to Terrelle Pryor, the Jets went on an 81-yard drive that culminated in a 2-yard touchdown run by Forte with 9:38 remaining in the fourth quarter to extend their lead to 28-20.
Nick Folk kicked a 24-yard field goal for the Jets' final points. The short scoring drive was set up when Lorenzo Mauldin intercepted a McCown pass at the Cleveland 8.
The Browns added a final touchdown with 12 seconds remaining when Josh McCown threw a 1-yard pass to Andrew Hawkins and added a two-point conversion on a pass to Terrelle Pryor.
McCown connected on 25 of 49 passes for 341 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. Six of the completions went to Pryor for 101 yards.
The Browns built their 20-7 lead in the first half thanks to McCown's 5-yard scoring pass to Hawkins, a 1-yard run by Isaiah Crowell and two field goals from Cody Parker.
The first touchdown drive covered 75 yards in eight plays, including a 32-yard completion to tight end Gary Barnidge on the first play from scrimmage.
The Jets closed the gap to 10-7 when Bilal Powell ran 35 yards on a draw play for a touchdown in the second quarter.
Crowell slammed in from the 1 as the Browns expanded their lead to 17-7 with 1:51 remaining in the second period, culminating a nine-play, 70-yard drive. An interference penalty on safety Rontez Miles on coverage of Barnidge in the end zone preceded the score.
The Browns increased the lead to 20-7 on a 27-yard field goal by Parkey on the final play of the first half.
NOTES: The 1986 Browns team that infamously lost to the Broncos in the AFC Championship game (John Elway-led 98-yard drive) was honored. Coach Marty Schottenheimer, who has early onset Alzheimer’s disease, was in attendance ... Browns first-round draft pick Corey Coleman missed a sixth straight game with a hand injury. The receiver from Baylor has seven receptions for 173 yards and two touchdowns. ... Browns CB Joe Haden, who had been nursing a groin injury, was active. ... WR Josh Gordon was released this weekend from a rehabilitation facility. He hasn't been reinstated by the NFL. ... Browns DB Briean Boddy-Calhoun suffered a head injury in the first quarter and didn't return.