Getty Quarterback Jacoby Brissett of the Cleveland Browns celebrates after a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FirstEnergy Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Jacoby Brissett entered the NFL in 2016 as a backup to Tom Brady with the New England Patriots. On Sunday, November 27, Brissett bested his old mentor to keep the Cleveland Browns‘ season alive in what could be the last game he ever starts for the team.
Following the victory, an elated Brissett took to the podium and quoted a line his old mentor uttered just three weeks ago after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Los Angeles Rams in comeback fashion.
“I mean no disrespect, but in the words of Tom Brady, ‘That was f****** awesome,'” Brissett said. “That was f****** awesome.”
Brissett threw a strike to tight end David Njoku in the end zone on a fourth-and-goal play with less than a minute to play, forcing overtime. He then led the Browns on a game-winning drive that ended with a three-yard touchdown run by Nick Chubb.
The win moves the Browns’ record to a modest 4-7, but with the return of quarterback Deshaun Watson scheduled for next weekend, hope may have just returned to Cleveland.
Deshaun Watson Era in Cleveland Set to Begin vs. Houston Texans
GettyQuarterback Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns throws a pass during a practice at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on November 23, 2022 in Berea, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
As of the final whistle Sunday, Watson had officially completed his 11-game suspension and is, somewhat ironically, poised to make his first start in nearly two years against his former team the Houston Texans.
The Texans (1-9-1) are the league’s worst franchise by a considerable margin, both in terms of overall record and point differential (-86). So while there is no such thing as a guaranteed win in the NFL, especially on the road, the Browns could not have a better opportunity to string together a couple of consecutive victories.
Watson looked shaky during his lone, brief appearance during the preseason, completing just 1-of-5 passes for seven yards against the Jacksonville Jaguars. But before Houston sidelined him for the entirety of the 2021 campaign and the NFL suspended him for the first 11 games of this season, Watson had earned trips to three straight Pro Bowls.
Over the span of 54 games, which included 53 starts, Watson has thrown for 14,539 yards at a completion rate of 67.8 percent. He has tossed 104 touchdowns compared to only 36 interceptions and has rushed the ball for 1,677 yards and 17 touchdowns, per Pro Football Reference.
While returning to Houston is likely to come with a considerable amount of pressure, Watson couldn’t ask for a better opponent against whom to shake off the rust. A victory in his first game back will move the Browns to 5-7 with back-to-back divisional games on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals and at home against the Baltimore Ravens.
Winning either, or both, of those contests will be a tall order. But if the Browns are able to do it, they will have played their way back into the playoff conversation.
“Why not us?” pass rusher Myles Garrett posited Sunday.
Jacoby Brissett’s Time as Browns QB Ends With Bang Over Bucs
GettyQuarterback Jacoby Brissett of the Cleveland Browns throws the ball during the second half of a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FirstEnergy Stadium on November 27, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
If Sunday was, in fact, Brissett’s swan song in Cleveland, it ended on a high note.
Brissett unquestionably played a huge role in the victory, though his mistakes late in games directly contributed to close losses against both the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Chargers earlier this year.
On the season, Brissett has thrown for 2,608 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 64.1 percent of his passes. He has also rushed for 238 yards and two scores on the ground, per Pro Football Reference.
“I’m obviously grateful for this opportunity and grateful for those men in that room,” Brissett said during his postgame press conference. “Because it is the ‘scheduled’ one, this was a great game to kind of end it on, but we have to stack them. We have to stack them.”
The Browns are also grateful for the water Brissett has carried during a tumultuous time for the organization, per head coach Kevin Stefanski.
“I just gave him a game ball. I am really happy for Jacoby. He is a great leader. He is a great teammate. That is why he got a game ball,” Stefanski said following Sunday’s win over the Bucs. “We are going to need him to continue to be a great teammate and a great leader. That is his role on this football team. He battled like crazy. Again, that is a really good defense. It was a great effort by him.”