Jets lean on special teams, Breece Hall to beat Browns

Breece Hall rushed for 83 yards and caught the go-ahead touchdown pass Sunday as the New York Jets won their second straight game, stopping the visiting Cleveland Browns 27-20 in East Rutherford, N.J.

Hall put New York (2-7) ahead for good 38 seconds into the fourth quarter, catching Justin Fields' short pass and rumbling 42 yards to the end zone for a 24-17 lead. Nick Folk added a 37-yard field goal with 6:13 remaining for a 10-point lead.

Andre Szmyt brought Cleveland within seven points by connecting on a 29-yard field goal at the 2:57 mark, but the Jets ran out the clock. Hall ran for 12 yards and a first down, while the Browns gifted them a first down by getting called for holding on third-and-16 with 1:50 remaining.

Cleveland had one final chance to get the ball back but was flagged for a neutral zone infraction on fourth-and-5 with 58 seconds left, enabling Fields to kneel twice to end the game.

Fields completed 6 of 11 passes for just 54 yards and was sacked three times. New York ran just 47 plays from scrimmage and finished the day with 169 total yards, winning thanks in large part to two special teams touchdowns in the first quarter.

Rookie Dillon Gabriel hit 17 of 32 attempts for 167 yards with two touchdowns for Cleveland, while running back Quinshon Judkins gained 75 yards on 22 rushes. The Browns totaled 278 yards as Gabriel was sacked six times for 47 yards.

The Jets' Will McDonald IV recorded four of those sacks.

Cleveland initiated scoring at the 6:34 mark of the first quarter as Gabriel found David Njoku for a 9-yard touchdown pass. However, the Jets responded on the ensuing kickoff as Kene Nwangwu returned it 99 yards for the tying score.

New York used special teams again to take the lead with 5:45 remaining. After the Browns went three-and-out, Isaiah Williams fielded the punt and raced 74 yards to make it 14-7.

Gabriel and Jerry Jeudy hooked up for a 22-yard touchdown pass with 10:34 left in the first half, Jeudy's first score of the year. Folk's 26-yard field goal put the Jets up 17-14 but Szmyt bombed one from 45 to tie the game 17-17 at the half.

--Field Level Media