While fumbles are a part of football, Cleveland Browns receiver Jerry Jeudy was guilty of a particularly egregious one during Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders. One notable name criticizing Jeudy's effort was Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe.
The play in question came in the second quarter. With Cleveland leading 14-3, quarterback Shedeur Sanders rolled to his right and found Jeudy wide open down the field. Jeudy ran for nearly 20 yards after catching the ball, but it looked as though the run would end at the 30-yard line. Seeing two Raiders in front of him, Jeudy immediately slowed down, then hopped. Safety Jeremy Chinn, though, was trailing from behind and never gave up on the play. Jeudy slowing down so much allowed Chinn to track him down and knock the ball loose. The Raiders recovered the fumble.
Sharpe called Jeudy out immediately following the play.
"Come on Jeudy. Can’t mess that play up. Sanders playing out of his mind and you got careless," Sharpe said on X.
There's no arguing with Sharpe here.
What Jeudy did was perplexing. We can certainly understand trying to make a little more out of a play that appeared to be over. But slowing down and hopping is never a good idea, and this play was a perfect illustration of why. The last thing a ball carrier wants to do is something that brings trailing players back into the play.