Sarah DeWolfe | Co Editor-in-Chief
On Thursday night, the Cleveland Browns encountered something not seen by the team in years: the letter W.
The Browns’ 21-17 win over the New York Jets marked their first victory since they played the San Diego Chargers on Christmas Eve of 2016, a drought that lasted exactly 635 days.
The team was led by rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield, who was picked first overall in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Browns. Mayfield took over in the first half when starting QB Tyrod Taylor left the field with a concussion. Faced with quite the deficit to overcome, Mayfield wasted no time sending the ball down the field, completing 17 of 23 passes for 201 yards.
The win was all the sweeter at home in front of the Cleveland crowd, and all the boozier thanks to Bud Light. In August, the beer company advertised free beer for the city of Cleveland when the Browns would win a game. They stocked at least 15 “Victory Fridges” across Northern Ohio with about 200 bottles each of the free beer, which were merrily unlocked and passed around following the long-awaited win.
As Clevelanders ride out the high of finally being on the winning team, Mayfield is basking in his instant success. He has been named to the starting quarterback position for the upcoming week with Tyrod Taylor-if healthy-as the backup.
Not only did the rookie pull through to clinch a much-needed win, but he was able to deliver free beer to the city of Cleveland when they needed it most. Perhaps the Mayfield Era is upon us.
