Week 9 Instant Reaction: Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns defense suffocates Bengals

Baker Mayfield

A lot was said this week about the departure of Odell Beckham Jr, which were shared in the social media sphere were directed at Baker Mayfield not doing enough and making throws to him. Well, the Browns quarterback came out in the game on a mission.

He started the game going 7-of-8 for 121 yards and a huge 60-yard touchdown bomb on his first pass to Donovan Peoples-Jones. With Beckham out of Cleveland, it was a very symbolic play by the quarterback.

In the first half, Mayfield seemed quicker with his decisions, and that all paid off with the big lead by halftime. The second half was not as smooth as Mayfield was sacked a couple of times but he still came up with some very impressive throws that sealed the deal in the fourth quarter.

He made a dazzling 3rd down throw again to Peoples-Jones down to the three-yard line. And then on a third down and goal, he threw a bullet to tight end David Njoku for an 18-yard touchdown. He finished the game going 14 for 21 for 218 yards and two touchdowns.

Nick Chubb

I’ve said for a while that Nick Chubb is a special running back in this league. The Browns are fortunate to have him on their team. He was terrific again in this game. He started his first series on offense by running for 34 yards and catching a pass for 26 yards and scoring the touchdown.

He was bottled up for several other attempts later in the game but early in the third quarter he took a pitch from his quarterback and rumbled 70 yards for the score. Chubb finished his afternoon going for 137 yards on only 14 attempts along with two touchdowns.

Chubb’s vision and instincts and his ability to find the gaps and burst through those and pick up extra yards is simply special. If Chubb is given enough opportunities, he will easily catch many of those past great running backs in Browns history and likely be only behind Jim Brown once the dust settles.