Hue Jackson was finally relieved from his duties as head coach of the Cleveland Browns in late October of last season, after his long-struggling team got off to a 2-5-1 start. Two weeks later, the division-rival Cincinnati Bengals hired Jackson, whose expertise is on the offensive side of the ball, to be a special defensive assistant.

It was clear from the outset of Jackson's hiring by the Bengals that the Browns were rankled. Cleveland guard Joel Bitonio said his former coach had gone “back to the enemy,” and following Browns safety Damarious Randall picking off a pass during his team's subsequent 35-20 win over Cincinnati, he pointedly handed the ball to Jackson on the opposing sidelines. After the game, Cleveland quarterback Baker Mayfield tried to avoid a direct interaction with Jackson on the field, ultimately settling for a brisk, dismissive handshake.

Mayfield, obviously, wasn't the only one in the Browns' locker room who took issue with Jackson, both before and after he was dismissed by Cleveland and appointed by Cincinnati. Months later, though, the former No. 1 overall draft pick admitted he was out for “revenge” against Jackson when he put up 256 passing yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions against the Bengals.

“I'm not gonna lie to you and say that the first time I played Hue did not feel good,” Mayfield told ESPN's Mina Kimes in a feature on the Browns' franchise signal-caller. “It's human nature to want to get revenge.”

Mayfield threw for 3,725 yards, 27 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions while appearing in 14 games as a rookie. More importantly, he led Cleveland, which went winless in 2017, to a 6-7 record as a starter, including five wins in the team’s last seven games of the regular season.

Jackson, meanwhile, was released by the Bengals in January, and is currently without a job in the NFL.