Cleveland Browns Instant Reactions: Baker Mayfield era begins
By Randy Gurzi
3. Denzel Ward is special and so is this defense
A lot of the attention went to No. 1 overall pick and rightfully so. Mayfield made the offense look so much better, but the No. 4 pick has been a beast all season. Denzel Ward was the fourth player taken as the Browns wanted themselves shut down corner. So far, they should be thrilled with their investment.
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Ward had two picks in Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers and was holding his own against Antonio Brown — one of the best in the game. In Week 2, he was facing another elite wideout in Michael Thomas from the New Orleans Saints. Thomas had a good game — but like Brown the week prior — he had to earn every single inch of ground he got.
He showed back up in their big win Thursday. Down 14-3 in the second half, Ward ripped the ball away from Robby Anderson and then jumped on the loose ball. He gave Cleveland the ball at their own eight-yard line. The offense wasn’t able to punch it in, but they made it a one-score game at 14-6.
Later in the game, other defensive stars stood out and made big plays. Linebacker Joe Schobert picked off a pass from Jets quarterback Sam Darnold and it allowed them to force New York to use all their timeouts. Then a big sack from Trevon Coley led to the Jets into desperation mode and Darnold threw another pick as Terrance Mitchell sealed the deal for the Browns first win of the season.