How the Browns can Shake Up the AFC North Early

There is an extraordinary amount of buzz in Cleveland Ohio about the Browns being playoff bound! The national media has been talking about the Ravens and Bengals ruling the AFC North this 2023 season, but should they be sleeping on the Browns? I know people will say the Browns will self-destruct like normal, but this year feels different! It seems quiet on the Browns front compared to the last few seasons. There is an underlying sense of urgency for coach Kevin Stefanski to bring Cleveland a playoff winning team. Around the AFC North things are rocky with disarray in Baltimore and injuries in Bengals camp. Things could be falling in to place for the Cleveland Browns to use their first four games to take the lead in the AFC North. They say it is the quiet one you need to watch out for and for once Browns camp seems quiet!

Cleveland Browns schedule for the first five weeks:

Week 1: Cincinnati at Cleveland

Week 2: Cleveland at Pittsburgh

Week 3: Tennessee at Cleveland

Week 4: Baltimore at Cleveland

Week 5: Bye Week

The Cleveland Browns start their 2023 regular season with the Cincinnati Bengals at home. Until recently I would have said the Bengals would win but Joe Burrow suffered calf injury in practice which puts his status for week one in Cleveland up in the air. Last season Burrow missed practices leading into the season and I am not sure if you remember but the first game of the year against Pittsburgh was ugly. Burrow threw four interceptions, and they lost 23-20 in overtime to Mitch Trubisky, who threw for 194 yards with 1 touchdown. If Burrow can’t practice but is able to play in week one, I expect a rusty version of himself like last year’s opening game. Two days ago, Ja’Marr Chase told Inside Training Camp, “I told him that with all honesty I don’t want him there. Same thing with me last year. I sat out on extra game just to let my hip all the way heal up, and you don’t want to cause no other problems later on in the season and told him as long as you’re there after week 5 and on, we’re good brother.” Hopefully Burrow will take his time to get back on the field, so he doesn’t end up like Kevin Durant did with a ruptured

achilles. This is a prime opportunity for the Browns to steal a game against the Bengals.

The Browns then must go to Pittsburgh for week two which will be a tough game and this game could go either way. Last year the Browns split with the Steelers but if Deshaun Watson lives up to his potential the Browns could sweep the mediocre Steelers. Watson needs to live up to the monster contract and a win at Pittsburgh would be a great way to live up to the hype. Then on to week three against the Titans who were a shell of themselves last season.

Week four brings the Baltimore Ravens into Cleveland and they are coming in with a new “improved” offense under Todd Monken. Monken who played a part in the very disorganized 2019 Browns, was able to get another opportunity in the NFL as the offensive coordinator for Baltimore this season. Reports have come out of Ravens camp this year that Monken was taking away Lamar Jackson’s wrist band of plays so Jackson could learn the lingo, process the play fast, relay the play and possibly change the play if needed. This paints a picture that maybe Jackson relied too much on the wrist band/cheat sheet and maybe didn’t understand the offense very well. The past few days there have been reports that Ravens Camp is getting a little spicy with Jackson punting the ball several times out of frustration and Mark Andrews giving the referees the bird. It sounds like a lot of frustration is happening in the Ravens camp and this too is an opportunity for the Browns to pounce on the Ravens early in the season.

The Cleveland Browns have the chance to steal some early games in their division and hopefully the momentum could take them all the way to the playoffs. The stars might be aligning over Cleveland Ohio for early divisional wins and some winning football that the fans have been waiting for over the years! These first 4 games could catapult the Browns all the way to the playoffs and maybe even to a division title!