The Jets kept giving the ball away.
Their defense refused to give the game away.
Behind a dominant pass rush led by rookie David Bailey, the Jets (2-3) snapped their three-game losing streak with a 17-12 victory over the Browns (3-2) on a rainy Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium. The victory also ended Cleveland’s three-game winning streak.
Braelon Allen delivered the decisive blow, scoring on a 22-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter after Browns punter Corey Bojorquez fumbled a snap. He rushed for 116 yards and the winning touchdown on 24 carries, starting in place of Breece Hall, who missed his second straight game with a quadriceps injury suffered during the Jets’ Week 3 loss to the Lions.
Geno Smith completed 17 of 30 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown.
Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson completed 15 of 33 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown. Linebacker Quincy Williams, who played five seasons for the Jets from 2021-25, forced three fumbles and recorded 11 tackles against his former team.
“I think the thing that we think about more than anything is every week is a game that you need,” Jets coach Aaron Glenn said when asked how badly the team needed a victory. “It doesn’t matter what the situation is, we go out there and have the mindset of ‘Man, we have to win this week.’
“Regardless of what happened in the past, regardless of what happened, it doesn’t matter. We have to win. We don’t think negatively like that, we just think each week we move on and we have to win the game.”
It was an ugly day at the Meadowlands, with rain falling throughout the game. Both teams fumbled twice because of the rain. But a week after allowing 492 yards in a loss to the Bears, the Jets defense responded emphatically.
Bailey finished with three sacks, seven tackles, and four quarterback hits, bringing his season sack total to five. The Jets recorded eight sacks as a team.
Jets fans criticized the No. 2 overall selection in the 2026 NFL Draft for what many saw as a slow start. On Sunday, he showed the disruptive ability that made him such a coveted prospect and strengthened his case for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year consideration.
Bailey entered Sunday with two sacks but hadn’t yet delivered a breakout performance. Against Cleveland, he supplied one when the Jets desperately needed it.
“It felt good to know that I’m able to compete at the high level,” Bailey said. “I’m just proud of my D-Line, proud of the defense as a whole after working on the things that we said we were going to work on throughout the week.”
The Jets also made an early effort to get Garrett Wilson involved after he caught just three passes for 27 yards against the Bears. On their opening possession, Wilson caught three passes for 70 yards, including a 32-yard touchdown from Smith that gave the Jets a 7-0 lead.
Wilson finished with seven catches for 104 yards and a touchdown.
Then the offense stalled.
The Jets gained just 55 yards over the remainder of the first half, and Smith took three sacks. Cleveland failed to fully capitalize, settling for two Andre Szmyt field goals that cut the Jets’ lead to 7-6 at halftime.
The Jets returned to the red zone late in the third quarter but squandered another scoring opportunity. Tight end Kenyon Sadiq fumbled after a hit by Williams, and Cleveland’s Ronnie Hickman recovered at the Browns’ 7-yard line. Sadiq was ruled out with a concussion and did not return.
Gang Green found points on its next possession. An offside penalty against Maliek Collins set up Jason Sanders’ 54-yard field goal, extending the Jets’ lead to 10-6 early in the fourth quarter.
Despite facing relentless pressure, Watson finally broke through with 6:15 remaining. He found rookie Denzel Boston for a 29-yard touchdown after Boston beat Brandon Stephens. Szmyt missed the extra point, leaving Cleveland with a 12-10 lead.
The Jets’ next possession ended with another turnover. Carson Schwesinger sacked Smith and forced a fumble, which Adin Huntington recovered at the Jets’ 48-yard line. It was Gang Green’s fourth fumble of the afternoon.
Then special teams bailed out the offense.
The Jets forced a three-and-out, and Bojorquez fumbled the ensuing punt snap. Gang Green recovered at Cleveland’s 28-yard line, setting up Allen’s go-ahead touchdown run and a 17-12 lead with just over three minutes remaining.
“I wasn’t expecting to run the ball, and when he [Jets offensive coordinator Frank Reich] called it, I was glad he did, and it worked out obviously,” Allen said of the decision to run on third-and-9.
After the Jets punted with 1:47 left, Watson had one final chance to lead Cleveland on a winning drive with no timeouts remaining. But the Jets’ pass rush shut the door, with Will McDonald sacking Watson on fourth-and-11 at the Browns’ 17-yard line.
The Jets head back on the road next week to face the Patriots at Gillette Stadium, their fourth road game in six weeks.
Gang Green still has plenty to clean up. But for one rain-soaked afternoon, Bailey and the defense gave the Jets something they badly needed: a way to win.