Jameis Winston has given the Cleveland Browns hope.
The veteran quarterback threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Cedric Tillman with 59 seconds remaining on Sunday as Cleveland stunned the visiting Baltimore Ravens 29-24.
Winston completed 27 of 41 passes for 334 yards with three touchdowns in his first start since 2022. The 30-year-old stepped in after Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles injury last Sunday and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson injured his finger in relief of Watson.
Tillman had seven catches for 99 yards with two touchdowns. His winning score came one play after Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton dropped an interception that could have sealed the win for Baltimore (5-3).
Cleveland (2-6) snapped its five-game skid and ended the Ravens’ five-game win streak.
Baltimore running back Derrick Henry ran for a 2-yard touchdown with 2:36 remaining that put the Ravens up 24-23. Henry, who entered the game leading the NFL with 873 yards rushing, finished with 73 yards on 11 carries.
Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who leads the team with 54 tackles, was carted off the field with a neck injury in the third quarter.
Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson threw for 289 yards with two touchdowns. However, Jackson was hampered by several drops by his wide receivers.
Browns running Nick Chubb, playing in his second game since recovering from a knee injury in 2023, finished with 52 yards on 16 carries.
Cleveland took a 13-10 lead on the opening drive of the second half when David Njoku caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from Winston.
The Ravens went up 17-13 with 4:42 left in the third quarter on Mark Andrews’s 7-yard touchdown reception, his 10th career score against the Browns.
Cleveland eclipsed the 20-point mark for the first time this season on its next drive. Another miscommunication in the Ravens’ secondary allowed Tillman to catch a pass over the middle and score a 22-yard touchdown for a 20-17 lead.
Justin Tucker missed a 50-yard field goal attempt that would have tied the game early in the fourth quarter. Dustin Hopkins gave the Browns a 23-17 lead on a 48-yard field goal with 4:55 left.
Baltimore was short-handed on defense. Cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey (knee) and Nate Wiggins (shoulder/illness) were both ruled out before the game, and outside linebacker David Ojabo was a healthy scratch.
Hamilton gave the Ravens momentum at the end of the first half when he strip-sacked Watson in Cleveland territory. Baltimore recovered and cashed in with Nelson Agholor’s first touchdown of the season, an 11-yard reception that put the visitors up 10-6 at halftime.
–Field Level Media