Cleveland Browns vs. N.Y. Jets: 5 best games of all-time
By Thomas Moore
While the season-opening game in 1979 was exciting, it has nothing on the matchup between the Browns and Jets on the second Sunday in December of the 1978 season.
The Browns had seen their playoff hopes extinguished the week before in Seattle, which may help explain why only 36,881 fans were at Municipal Stadium for what would turn into a 37-34 overtime win by the Browns over the Jets.
When Cleveland took a 27-10 lead into the fourth quarter it looked good, but the Jets rallied for 24 consecutive points on a pair of touchdown passes from Matt Robinson, a touchdown run by Kevin Long and a field goal from Pat Leahy.
Now trailing 34-27 with just 1:16 left in the game, the Browns needed to travel 73 yards if they didn’t want to turn a once-sure win into a second-consecutive loss.
Helped by a 26-yard reception by Greg Pruitt, the Browns drove down the field and tied the game when Brian Sipe hit Calvin Hill with an 18-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone just 14 seconds before the end of regulation.
The Browns won the coin toss in overtime before turning the game over to Pruitt, then in his sixth season with Cleveland.
Pruitt returned the kickoff 31 yards, then ran the ball three consecutive times to take the Browns to the New York five-yard line. From there, Cockroft converted a 22-yard field goal to give the Browns the win.
Pruitt finished the game with 138 rushing yards and added a 22-yard touchdown reception as the Browns rolled up more than 500 yards of offense.
The defense also intercepted Robinson four times, including safety Thom Darden’s 10th interception of the year, a record that still stands to this day.
Next: No. 2: Welcome to Monday Night Football