Browns studs and duds: Great offensive showing wasted in Week 2

The Cleveland Browns surrendered a 13-point lead with fewer than two minutes to play. Here is who stood out as both studs and duds in their Week 2 loss.

It was a terrible ending to what felt like a great game. The Cleveland Browns were on the verge of going 2-0 for the first time in 29 years as Nick Chubb extended their lead to 30-17 with just 1:55 to play.

Then, things fell apart.

Cade York missed the extra point, keeping the lead at 13 and the defense did the rest. And by the rest, that means they gave up 14 points in the blink of an eye and fell to 1-1 on the young season. Now, let’s look back at the game to see who stood out as both studs and duds in Cleveland’s home opener.

Browns studs and duds from Week 2 collapse

Stud: Amari Cooper, WR

Against the Panthers, Amari Cooper was open all day but the ball wasn’t coming to him with much accuracy. That changed against the Jets as Jacoby Brissett was on point with his throws in Week 2.

That resulted in Cooper having a great game, which really took off on Cleveland’s second drive of the game. On that series, Cooper had four receptions for 48-yards and closed it out with a six-yard touchdown reception.

He finished with nine receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown, which is the type of stat line most of us expected to see more often than what he had against Carolina.

Dud: Grant Delpit, S

Beat near the end of the third quarter for 31 yards

On third-and-four after Chubb gave Cleveland the lead, Delpit was the closest man again as Wilson got wide open, but thankfully he dropped the ball and the Browns got it back.

Stud: Jacoby Brissett, QB

Last week, Jacoby Brissett wasn’t sharp at all. He was misfiring early and while he did enough to help Cleveland secure the win, he really needed to be better if they wanted to win going forward.

In Week 2, he came out looking much more prepared and comfortable. He was 5-of-5 on the opening drive and added 17 yards on two runs. It ended up being a 14-play drive that covered 90 yards and was capped off with a Nick Chubb touchdown. It was the exact offense this coaching staff wants to see from Brissett while he’s their starter — and he wasn’t done there.

Brissett led them on another long drive, going 61 yards on 10 plays following New York’s touchdown. This time, he hit Amari Cooper from six yards out, which was the fourth catch of the drive for Cooper. He finished with 229 yards while connecting on 22-of-27 passes.

He did throw a pick at the end of the game but that was due to him forcing things since they got the ball back with just 22 seconds trailing by one.

Dud: Donovan Peoples-Jones, WR

All offseason, we heard about how Donovan Peoples-Jones needed to step up as the No. 2 wide receiver on this team. He did exactly that in Week 1, catching six passes for 60 yards while pulling down some clutch passes as well.

The performance was impressive but DPJ’s main issue has been consistency. That remains a concern since he was absent from the game in Week 2. He had just one target all day, and while he nearly pulled that in for a touchdown, he ended the day with no catches at all. Not what they needed from him.

Stud: Nick Chubb, RB

It feels as though Nick Chubb should just have a permanent spot here. Chubb has been a monster for Cleveland ever since they drafted him in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft — and he seems to only get better the more he touches the ball.

After watching Kareem Hunt score multiple touchdowns while he didn’t cross the goal line, Chubb found himself scoring not once, or twice, but three times this Sunday. The first was a four-yard touchdown to cap off their opening drive and then he again hit pay dirt again in the fourth quarter from seven yards out.

That score was huge since the Jets had just tied the game on a 57-yard field goal from Greg Zuerlein. Trying to keep the momentum from staying with the home team, Chubb had a 15 and 22-yard run on that drive as well, ensuring his team would take the lead back.

He also scored to make it 30-17, and at that time, it seemed to be a lock, but then the defense let them down, which leads us to our final dud.

Dud: Joe Woods, Defensive Coordinator

In Week 1, Joe Woods called a great game but the defense ended up giving up chunks of yardage in the fourth quarter. This time, it was throughout the game where he struggled.

New York was moving the ball with ease but there were still just 17 points on the board late. Then, the defense got incredibly soft as there were openings everywhere.

It all started with a 66-yarder, which felt an awful lot like the Robbie Anderson 75-yarder against Carolina. There were miscommunications throughout the day and players were running wide open. While the players need to execute, the confusion they;ve shown falls squarely on Woods, who could be feeling some heat after this loss.