The Cleveland Browns were ahead by three points, with the ball, and had the chance to seal the game if they could do what they had done all day.
Yet, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski opened the door to Carson Wentz and the Minnesota Vikings by throwing the ball, which resulted in another gut-wrenching defeat.
Stefanski was left answering for why he chose to throw the ball on third-and-11, which enabled Minnesota to retain a timeout and drive down the field for the winning score in its 21-17 win in London on Sunday.
The Browns rushed for a season-high 140 yards, keyed by Quinshon Judkins’ career-high 110 rushing yards. Yet, when they needed to get 10 yards to seal victory — after taking over at their own 40-yard line with 3:27 left in the game — they went backwards.
Browns ‘Did Not’ Come Through On Final Drive
After three quarters of moving the ball against the Vikings defense, Cleveland’s offense flatlined in the fourth quarter. The Browns managed just 73 yards — and 44 came on three plays with the Vikings playing prevent defense.
The Browns defense did its job, forcing a turnover, a missed field goal then another three-and-out on a six-play, minus-2 yard drive that gave Gabriel and Co. the chance to salt away his first NFL win.
Yet, after running the ball twice with Judkins, and netting minus-2 yards but forcing Minnesota to use two of its timeouts, Gabriel put up an incomplete pass intended for Isaiah Bond. The drive took just 22 seconds off the clock, and the Vikings retained a timeout for their potential game-winning drive.
“You factor all those things on all those downs. You consider what to do there,” Stefanski said. “Ultimately, we’ve got to come through, bottom line, in that situation — in those sets and sticks — and we did not.”
Quinshon Judkins ‘Frustrated’ Despite Career Day
After overcoming a bizarre start to his Browns career, Judkins finally broke out and showed fans why the team spent the 36th overall pick on him in the draft in April.
Judkins was the Browns’ featured back and became the first back to post 100-plus yards since Jerome Ford did against the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 12, 2023.
But that was little consolation to Judkins after the game.
“Man, I’m a competitor,” Judkins said. “Regardless of what stats I have personally, it doesn’t matter to me man.
“I came from Ohio State. Our mentality was to win every single day. Every single day, no matter what it is, you’re competitive in everything you do.
That’s the mentality that I brought here to Cleveland. That’s just my mindset. So for us not to come out with the win today, it definitely is a frustrating feeling.”
Judkins broke out against the Vikings, who has allowed 100-plus yards in four of their first five games — and were gashed for 143 yards by Bijan Robinson of the Atlanta Falcons. Yet, he may have tougher sledding against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
But even if he does, Judkins’ mindset does not expect to change.
“Believe in your teammates, believe in everything that we have as our mindset as a whole,” Judkins said. “It’s a next play mentality. So next play, forget about it. My teammates do a lot of great things, so I always believe in them.”
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