David Njoku earns high praise in Browns loss to Ravens 2 days after fire pit burn

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Sunday was a bad day for the Cleveland Browns after being completely outplayed by the division rival Baltimore Ravens.

Little went the way of the orange and brown in the 28-3 loss at Cleveland Browns stadium.

The Browns played without starting quarterback Deshaun Watson, who was held out with an injured throwing shoulder.

There was a bit of good news though, tight end David Njoku played and did all he could to help a struggling rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

Last Friday night, there were doubts Njoku would play. The Browns tight end suffered burns to his face and hands following an incident with an outdoor fire pit.

Despite getting burned literally, Njoku still suited up and played an NFL football game less than 48 hours after the incident.

The Browns tight end tried to burn Ravens defenders. Njoku finished with team highs in receptions, six and receiving yards, 46.

Those numbers are modest for NFL standards, but given what took place earlier in the weekend, Njoku earned high praise from coaches and teammates.

“With the result we had yesterday, it’s hard to feel good about anything, but the way he played was unbelievable to me with what he went through,” head coach Kevin Stefanski said. “And not just the pass game, the run game. He’s the first guy picking his teammates up off the ground, it felt like every single play. So, he was a warrior yesterday. It was impressive to watch.”

“Yeah, he’s a tough character, man,” linebacker Anthony Walker said. “I told him, first of all, he’s a character for I don’t know what he tried to do at home. It obviously wasn’t done the right way, but, man, just the will to get out there on the field and go to war with your teammates, I thought that was awesome. Seeing him and seeing how he responded. I could tell you now, I don’t think I’m playing in that game. Just with the way everything – I don’t know if you guys have seen him, but it was a lot. He’s tough, man. He’s a tough guy. This has always been his persona since I’ve known him throughout college and being in the NFL, he’s a tough guy, and I wasn’t surprised, but obviously – yeah, he’s tough.”

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