Cade York's game-winning field goal lifts Cleveland Browns over Carolina Panthers | Quick hits
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Browns spent much of the final three quarters of Sunday afternoon's season opener playing with the lead over the Carolina Panthers. The only time the lead matters, though, is at the end.
That's when Cade York forever etched his name in Browns lore, kicking a 58-yard field goal with 0:08 remaining to give them a 26-24 victory over the Panthers. That came just 65 seconds after Eddy Pineiro had given Carolina its only lead of the game at 24-23 with 1:13 left on a 34-yard field goal.
Browns quick hits:Cade York's game-winning field goal lifts Cleveland over Panthers
The game was billed as Baker Mayfield's potential revenge game after being dealt by Cleveland to Carolina in July. Mayfield had his moments, including a fourth-quarter touchdown run and a 75-yard touchdown to Robbie Anderson to pull the Panthers within 23-21 with just over six minutes remaining.
The Browns were not able to grind out the final six-plus minutes of the game, giving Carolina the ball back with 2:14 remaining. The Panthers turned that into a 24-23 lead on Pineiro's kick.
Kareem Hunt's strong showing for Browns
The Browns finally showed the Nick Chubb-Kareem Hunt formation look on multiple plays. However, even when they didn't, Hunt managed to make Carolina pay.
Hunt accounted for both Cleveland first-half touchdowns. He caught a 1-yard flare to the right out of the backfield for the first one, then took off for a 24-yard touchdown run to make it 14-0.
Hunt finished with 46 yards on 11 carries. He had three catches for 26 yards.
Nick Chubb just doing Nick Chubb things
Hunt was the perfect complement to Chubb, who ran it 12 times in the first half for 79 yards. Chubb's 16th carry, a 20-yard run, put him at 110 for the game and set up a 34-yard Cade York field goal in the third quarter.
Chubb helped to set up York's third field goal, a 36-yarder in the fourth quarter, with a pair of nifty runs. He went for 16 on one when he bounced out of the would-be tackler's grasp, then took off for nine in which he shook off an ankle tackle.
Chubb finished with 141 yards on 22 carries.
Browns DE Jadeveon Clowney comes to play
Defensive end Jadeveon Clowney made his presence known on the very first play of the game when he batted down a Mayfield pass.
That was the first of two first-quarter passes Clowney got his hands on in the first quarter. He also deflected a pass with Mayfield trying to throw out of the end zone late in the quarter.
Browns defensive linemen get their hands on multiple Baker Mayfield passes
Clowney's two batted passes weren't the only ones Browns defensive linemen were able to get their hands on. Alex Wright and Perrion Winfrey had back-to-back tipped passes early in the second quarter.
Those two batted balls were the lead-up to the Browns' big first-half break. That came when Mayfield threw a rope, only it was right to safety Grant Delpit.
Delpit's pick set up the Browns' first score.
Ronnie Harrison Jr. provides three-safety look for Browns defense
The Browns spent all week talking about Christian McCaffrey's possible impact on the game. How they countered that, however, wasn't necessarily known.
Turns out, the three-safety look was the way to go. Ronnie Harrison Jr. joined Delpit and John Johnson III on a substantial percentage of the Browns' defensive snaps.
Harrison and Johnson also managed to add to the pressure put on Mayfield. The two combined to fold him up on the final play of the first quarter.
McCaffrey, by the way, was kept under wraps for the most part in the first half. He did have a 1-yard touchdown run, but had just nine net yards on three rushing attempts plus two receiving yards on two catches.
McCaffrey did have a huge play to help set up a second-half score, picking up a bad snap and running 28 yards to the Browns 36. The biggest was a 21-yard gain on the Panthers' final drive, which went to the Browns 14 after a horse-collar flag on Johnson.
Donovan Peoples-Jones shows off some hands
Donovan People-Jones was targeted a team-high seven times in the first half. He pulled in four of those passes for 42 yards.
Several of them, though, required a little extra effort. He needed to go low to pick up two of those, then went high to pull in a third for a 15-yard grab on third-and-9 on the Browns' second scoring drive.
Peoples-Jones also pulled in a 5-yard catch in the fourth quarter to move the chains on third-and-4.
Cade York's 'real' kicking debut for the Browns
York made plenty of headlines during the preseason with his big leg. However, none of those long field goals actually counted toward the fourth-round pick's career numbers.
On Sunday, he hit field goals of 26 and 34 yards to help the Browns open up a 20-7 lead in the third quarter. He added a 36-yarder to make it 23-14 in the fourth quarter.
None of that, though, matched the drama of his fourth field goal, the game-winner with eight seconds remaining.
Contact Chris at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com.
On Twitter: @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cade York game-winning field goal lifts Browns over Panthers
