Cleveland's defense has carried it to three straight wins while New York can't find a single answer on either side of the ball.
The Cleveland Browns (3-1) ride a three-game winning streak into MetLife Stadium to face a New York Jets (1-3) team stuck on a three-game slide. Cleveland has scored 81 points and allowed 95 this season, while New York has scored 76 and allowed 84. The Browns are chasing a fourth straight win, and the Jets badly need to snap their skid in front of the home crowd.
Game details
| When | Sunday, October 11, 2026 at 1:00 PM ET |
| Where | MetLife Stadium |
| TV | CBS |
| Line | New York Jets -2 | O/U 39.5 (market view) |
| Cleveland Browns record | 3-1 |
| New York Jets record | 1-3 |
The matchup
Cleveland has won three in a row, knocking off the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-24, the Carolina Panthers 21-18, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23-19 after an opening week loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, 10-34. New York hasn't won since Week 1, when it beat the Tennessee Titans 23-10. Since then it's been a rough stretch: a 17-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers, a 24-31 loss to the Detroit Lions, and a 12-23 loss to the Chicago Bears last week.
This one kicks off Sunday, October 11, 2026 at 1:00 PM ET at MetLife Stadium, airing on CBS. Light rain is expected with temperatures around 66 degrees, wind at 13 mph, and an 81 percent chance of precipitation, conditions that could make this a grind-it-out, ball-control type of game rather than a shootout.
Key matchups
Deshaun Watson leads a Cleveland offense that's found ways to win close games, and he'll lean on Quinshon Judkins and Raheim Sanders to control the clock against a Jets front that's dealing with its own injury issues at linebacker and defensive end.
On the other side, Geno Smith needs his passing game to show up against a Browns defensive front that just got gutted. With Garrett Wilson as the clear top target, Smith's best shot at keeping drives alive runs through getting him the ball in space, especially on early downs before Cleveland's pass rush can tee off.
Harold Fannin Jr. is the red-zone wild card here. Tight ends who can work the middle of the field against a Jets defense missing depth at linebacker tend to get schemed into scoring position, and Fannin's the guy Cleveland trusts closest to the goal line.
Injuries that matter
Cleveland's defensive line took a beating this week. Mason Graham, Mike Hall Jr., and Kalia Davis are all out at defensive tackle, which should open up running lanes for whoever lines up at running back for New York. Backup quarterback Dillon Gabriel is out with a back issue, but that doesn't touch Watson's status. Teven Jenkins is out on the offensive line, and Carsen Ryan and Tylan Wallace are both out as well.
New York is banged up at the skill positions. Breece Hall is out with a quadriceps injury, which hands the backfield to Braelon Allen. Adonai Mitchell is out with a finger injury, pushing Isaiah Williams into a bigger role alongside Garrett Wilson. Dylan Parham is out on the offensive line, and Tim Patrick, Kingsley Enagbare, and Will McDonald IV are all questionable. Kiko Mauigoa is out at linebacker, thinning out a group already dealing with injuries.
Fantasy angles
Deshaun Watson projects for 17.0 DraftKings points and gets the start for Cleveland with Dillon Gabriel out, making him a confident start against a Jets defense down multiple pieces up front.
Quinshon Judkins projects for 13.0 points and should see goal-line work behind an offensive line that's opened things up all season, even with Teven Jenkins out.
Garrett Wilson projects for 11.0 points and is New York's only proven target with Adonai Mitchell sidelined, making him a volume play regardless of the weather.
Denzel Boston projects for 11.5 points and is worth a look as Cleveland's clear number one receiver with Tylan Wallace out of the mix.
Breece Hall is out, so fade him completely and plug in Braelon Allen as the pivot if you need Jets backfield exposure.
The pick
New York is favored by 2.0 with a total of 39.5, and the market's score sits at Jets 21, Browns 19. That line reads like oddsmakers trust Geno Smith to find enough with Garrett Wilson at home, but Cleveland's three-game streak and a Jets defensive front banged up at linebacker give the Browns the edge in a game that should come down to who controls the ball inside the 20 in the rain.
Injury report
| Player | Team | Pos | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dillon Gabriel | Cleveland Browns | QB | Out |
| Teven Jenkins | Cleveland Browns | OG | Out |
| Carsen Ryan | Cleveland Browns | TE | Out |
| Tylan Wallace | Cleveland Browns | WR | Out |
| Kalia Davis | Cleveland Browns | DT | Out |
| Mason Graham | Cleveland Browns | DT | Out |
| Mike Hall Jr. | Cleveland Browns | DT | Out |
| Breece Hall | New York Jets | RB | Out |
| Adonai Mitchell | New York Jets | WR | Out |
| Dylan Parham | New York Jets | OG | Out |
| Tim Patrick | New York Jets | WR | Questionable |
| Kingsley Enagbare | New York Jets | LB | Questionable |
| Kiko Mauigoa | New York Jets | LB | Out |
| Will McDonald IV | New York Jets | DE | Questionable |
Projected starters
| Pos | Cleveland Browns | New York Jets |
|---|---|---|
| QB | Deshaun Watson | Geno Smith |
| RB | Quinshon Judkins, Raheim Sanders | Breece Hall, Braelon Allen |
| WR | Denzel Boston, KC Concepcion, Jerry Jeudy | Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell, Isaiah Williams |
| TE | Harold Fannin Jr. | Kenyon Sadiq |
Recent results
| Team | Last games |
|---|---|
| Cleveland Browns | Wk4 W 27-24 vs Pittsburgh Steelers, Wk3 W 21-18 vs Carolina Panthers, Wk2 W 23-19 vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| New York Jets | Wk4 L 12-23 vs Chicago Bears, Wk3 L 24-31 vs Detroit Lions, Wk2 L 17-20 vs Green Bay Packers |
In this story
- Cleveland Browns at New York Jets
- Cleveland Browns
- New York Jets
- Adonai Mitchell
- Braelon Allen
- Breece Hall
- Carsen Ryan
- Denzel Boston
- Deshaun Watson
- Dillon Gabriel
- Dylan Parham
- Garrett Wilson
- Geno Smith
- Harold Fannin Jr.
- Isaiah Williams
- Jerry Jeudy
- KC Concepcion
- Kalia Davis
- Kenyon Sadiq
- Kiko Mauigoa
- Kingsley Enagbare
- Mason Graham
- Mike Hall Jr.
- Quinshon Judkins
- Raheim Sanders
- Teven Jenkins
- Tim Patrick
- Tylan Wallace
- Will McDonald IV
Written by Rhett Zone, an AI analyst, from News Hub Fantasy data (schedule, scores, box scores, injuries and depth charts), and checked against that data before it published automatically. Read how we use AI in our editorial standards.