Greg Newsome II clearly isn’t the forgetful type, as he depicted when asked to recall last year’s contest between the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots.
It wasn’t that long ago, of course, a mere 11 months in the past. And it’s not like the 2021 first-round cornerback has an extensive number of NFL games to confuse it with.
But the reason it sticks out to Newsome is because of the absolute beatdown the Patriots put on the Browns at Gillette Stadium in a 45-7 victory. Mac Jones and the Patriots compiled 452 yards of offense including 182 yards on the ground. New England also won the turnover battle 1-0, recorded a 7-for-9 clip on third down and held an eight-minute advantage in time of possession.
It was one of the best days of the season for the Patriots offense, the Week 10 rout proving the fourth straight during the seven-game streak. It wasn’t exactly viewed the same in the visiting locker room, however.
“I just think when you have to take a loss like that, like we did last year, it was embarrassing losing like that,” Newsome told reporters in Cleveland on Thursday, per the team. “You never want to be embarrassed. I think the competitors we have on this team, you never want to see a game, an outcome like that whether it is a loss. You never want to see a loss where you just get completely blew out.”
Newsome and the Browns now are seeking “revenge” on their home field, the cornerback explained.
“I think we’ll play them tough again,” he added. “We definitely need revenge for this game, though. For sure.”
Cleveland might benefit from New England having to roll with third-string quarterback Bailey Zappe, rather than Jones who led the effort last season. Jones reportedly still could play after missing the previous two games with a high ankle sprain. Zappe put together a respectable first start of his NFL career against the Detroit Lions in Week 5, doing exactly what the Patriots have asked of him when he gets the opportunity.
Should Zappe get another start for the Patriots, who are a 2.5-point underdog entering the Week 6 contest, he’ll seemingly face a motivated Browns defense with Newsome looking to make his mark after a forgettable debut against New England.
