CLEVELAND — Jacoby Brissett had started 37 NFL games prior to Sunday's matchup between the Cleveland Browns and Carolina Panthers.
But it's clear the Week 1 contest carried some extra meaning for the 29-year-old signal-caller.
So much so that Brissett became visibly emotional during his postgame press conference following the Browns' 26-24 victory, which marked Cleveland's first Week 1 win since 2004. He even admitted that his emotions got the best of him early in the game, which he said contributed to his sluggish start vs. Carolina on Sunday.
"Emotions were high," Brissett said before pausing to compose himself. "The buildup to this moment, it goes further than, I know for me, from being here. A long time coming to get to this point and I've got to do a better job of calming those emotions down, especially in a lot of these critical situations."
Asked if he was more emotional because of the opportunity he had to start, Brissett replied: "That definitely played a lot into it... these aren't promised. So whenever you get an opportunity, you cherish those opportunities."
Now in his seventh season in the NFL, Brissett signed with the Browns after spending last season with the Miami Dolphins, with whom he started five games. While the North Carolina State product's decision to sign with Cleveland came shortly after the Browns' blockbuster trade to acquire Deshaun Watson, he figured to see extended playing time with Watson facing a likely suspension following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.
As it turned out, Watson would be suspended 11 games with Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski committing to Brissett as the Browns' starter during the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback's absence. While Brissett admittedly got off to a slow on Sunday, that faith was rewarded in the fourth quarter, as he led the Browns on a six-play, 35-yard drive with no timeouts remaining to set up Cade York's game-winning 58-yard field goal with 13 seconds remaining.
"He can be better," Stefanski said of Brissett on Monday. "But really, really proud of how he finished that game.”