Jameis Winston injected life into a comatose Cleveland Browns offense.
Taking over for injured Deshaun Watson on Sunday, Winston threw for 334 yards and three touchdowns in a 29-24 victory over rival Baltimore to push the Browns to 2-6.
"A win like this is required to change the season around," Winston said Sunday, via The Associated Press. "We have a long way to go."
The Browns scored 20 points in a game for the first time in 2024 after entering the week as the only team not to do so.
Winston is the first Cleveland quarterback with 300-plus pass yards, three-plus pass TDs and zero INTs in a game since Jacoby Brissett in Week 11, 2022 at Buffalo (lost 31-23).
"He was very confident in the huddle. He was talking the whole time. Some of the stuff he was saying was a little bit out there, but he was ready to go," guard Joel Bitonio said. "Obviously, he threw the ball well -- 300 yards, three touchdowns. The game-winner. He was a lot of energy. But he's been like that since he's been here, so it was expected."
The Browns offense under Watson was a zombie, unable to sustain drives and lacked explosives. Not only had Watson never generated 300 yards passing in any of his 19 starts in Cleveland over three years, the QB hadn't even reached 200 yards in seven starts in 2024.
With Winston under center, there was a timing and crispness to the offense we hadn't seen since Joe Flacco started to close out last year's playoff run. Where Watson struggled to pull the trigger on tight-window throws, Winston is fearless, showing aggressiveness and accuracy needed to matriculate the pigskin.
"I thought he played well," Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski said of Winston. "I thought the protection was outstanding all day. The guys really took the challenge of that, and I thought he got through his reads and guys got open. He made good decisions. Wasn't perfect. He's not going to play perfect. I'm not going to coach perfect. But I thought he played well."
Winston's aggressive nature doesn't come without some hold-onto-your-butts moments.
After the Ravens took the lead with 2:36 remaining, Winston led a nine-play, 74-yard TD drive, which was capped with a 38-yard shot to Cedric Tillman with 1:04 left. However, during the play that preceded the TD toss, Winston was nearly intercepted by Kyle Hamilton, who couldn't hang onto the ball thrown right at him.
"I started praying instantly," Winston said, reacting to the near pick.
"Oh my God!" Elijah Moore, the intended target, said. "The football gods were with us for sure."
With Winston under center and offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey calling plays, the Browns offense finally looked like a credible operation that could help dig them out of the early-season hole. In a jumbled AFC, the 2-6 Browns sit in 11th place, with six other two-win clubs.
