Ja’Quan McMillian returned an interception 44 yards for a game-sealing touchdown with 1:48 remaining, and the Denver Broncos spoiled career-best performances by Cleveland quarterback Jameis Winston and wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, beating the Browns 41-32 on Monday night.
Winston threw for a franchise-record 497 yards and four touchdowns, and Jeudy had nine catches for 235 yards – the most in NFL history by a receiver against his former team – and a TD. Jeudy played his first four seasons with Denver and was booed every time he caught the ball by the Broncos crowd.
Winston’s electric night included three picks, two of which were returned for TDs. Nik Bonitto took one 71 yards to the house late in the second quarter. Winston became the first NFL quarterback to throw for 400 or more yards with four or more TD passes and two pick-sixes.
Bo Nix finished with 294 yards passing, including a gorgeous deep ball from his own end zone that Marvin Mims Jr hauled in for a 93-yard touchdown. Nix also threw two picks.
“It was a great football game, they have a really good defense,” said Nix. “We forced three turnovers and that was kind of the difference in the game … it wasn’t pretty but all that matters is getting the win.”
The Broncos (8-5) enter their bye week in the seventh and final playoff spot. Denver have a 76% probability of making the postseason, according to NFL.com. The team haven’t been in the postseason since winning the Super Bowl in February 2016.
Winston surpassed the Browns passing record of 457 yards set by Josh McCown in 2015. He threw a 70-yard TD pass to Jeudy and a pair of scores to tight end David Njoku in falling to 2-3 as a starter for the Browns (3-9) since replacing the injured Deshaun Watson.
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Jeudy, a first-round draft pick in 2020, was traded to Cleveland this spring after an up-and-down four seasons with Denver.
