In the New York Jets’ fifth game of the 2026 season, on a miserable rainy day at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the Jets defeated the Cleveland Browns, 22 – 17.
The game opened with the Jets on defense. They had a nice start to the game with a three and out, forcing a Browns punt.
The Jets took over on offense and Garrett Wilson got going early with three receptions on the Jets’ first possession. The third went for a touchdown and an early 7 – 0 Jets lead.
The Browns came right back,
putting together a long drive helped by two Minkah Fitzpatrick 15 yard unnecessary roughness penalties. The Jets finally stopped the drive inside the 10 yard line. The Browns settled for a short field goal and the Jets led 7 – 3 late in the first quarter.
The quarter ended with the Jets still holding a 7 – 3 lead with the Jets driving on their own 34 yard line. The Jets were forced to punt and the Browns put together a short drive ending in a field goal. The score was Jets 7, Browns 6 with a little more than 10 minutes left in the first half.
After a Jets three and out Austin McNamara shanked a punt for just 33 yards, giving the Browns excellent field position at their own 37 yard line. David Bailey’s second sack of the game brought the Browns drive to a halt and the Jets took over on offense. They looked to put something together after getting stonewalled following their opening touchdown drive. Unfortunately the Jets again went nowhere. A Jets punt gave the Browns the ball at their own 10 yard line with a little more than a minute left in the half. A short Browns drive was thwarted well short of scoring position and the half ended with the Jets still leading the Browns, 7 – 6.
The Jets opened the third quarter on offense. They advanced into Browns territory before they were forced to punt, continuing a scoreless streak for the Jets since the opening drive. An Austin McNamara punt pinned the Browns down inside their 10 yard line to start their first drive of the second half.
The Jets defense forced a three and out, forcing a Browns punt out of their own end zone. The Jets took over in Browns territory within shouting distance of their first score since the opening drive. The Jets took the ball inside the Browns 10 yard line before Kenyon Sadiq lost a costly fumble and the Browns took over at their own 7 yard line.
The Jets forced another Browns three and out, the Browns punted and the Jets took over at their own 37 yard line. A scoreless third quarter ended with the Jets still clinging to a 7 – 6 lead, driving inside Browns territory. The Jets didn’t go far, but it was just far enough. Jason Sanders drilled a 54 yard field goal to give the Jets their first points since the opening drive and a 10 – 6 lead early in the fourth quarter.
On the ensuing Browns drive David Bailey sacked Deshaun Watson for his third sack of the game. The Jets forced a Browns punt and the Jets took over on offense at their own 31 yard line. After the Jets were forced to punt the Browns took over on their own 14 yard line. The Browns proceeded to put together a long drive culminating in a Deshaun Watson touchdown pass to Denzel Boston. The touchdown gave the Browns their first lead in the game with a little more than six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Isaiah Williams got a nice return on the ensuing kickoff and gave the Jets great field position at their own 45 yard line. A couple of Garrett Wilson catches gave the Jets the ball inside the Browns’ 40 yard line, looking for a game winning score. Alas, it was not to be. Geno Smith was sacked and lost the ball. The Browns recovered the fumble and they had the ball at their own 43 yard line, looking to run out the clock with a little over four minutes left.
The Jets defense got a three and out, forcing another Browns punt. A high snap turned into a Browns fumble. The Jets ended up the ball already in field goal range at the Browns 23 yard line with a little less than four minutes left in the game. A couple of plays later Braelon Allen broke through the line of scrimmage and took it to the house, giving the Jets a five point lead at 22 – 17 with three minutes left. All the Jets defense needed to do was keep the Browns out of the end zone and the Jets would have the victory.
A Jets three and out forced a Browns punt and gave the Jets the ball back just prior to the two minute warning. One Jets first down would seal the win. The Jets played it extremely conservatively, running three straight times, leading to a punt and one last chance for the Browns to win the game starting at their 20 yard line with 1:48 left. The Jets defense, once more into the breach, turned back the Browns offense, ending the game with a strip sack of Deshaun Watson. Final score: Jets 22, Browns 17.
The victory brought the Jets’ record to 2-3. The Jets go on the road next week to take on a suddenly red hot New England Patriots team, looking to get to .500 for the year.
