The Cleveland Browns…probably won’t suck this upcoming football season. The most forlorn franchise in the NFL is actually looking to be in pretty good shape. After becoming just the second team (after the 2008 Detroit Lions) in the history of the modern NFL to complete a season without a single win, the Browns finished their 2018 campaign with an impressive 7-8-1 record. They began the season as their typically awful selves, reaching a record of 2-5-1 at the season’s mid-point, after which Hue Jackson was fired. Offensive Coordinator Todd Haley was named the interim Head Coach and turned the team around, finishing with their best record since they barely missed the playoffs in 2007.
Now with new head coach Freddie Kitchens, the Browns have made several moves in the off season, the most notable of which is the trade for former Giant Odell Beckham Junior. General Manager John Dorsey also signed two cast-offs from the Kansas City Chiefs, tight end Demetrius Harris and controversial halfback Kareem Hunt. The offensive line has been reinforced by Bryan Witzmann and Eric Kush, formerly of the Chicago Bears, as well as Kendall Lamm, to give Baker Mayfield, one of the hottest young quarterbacks in the league more protection. This retooled offense is far more potent than any that Cleveland has had in recent memory.{{more}}
Cleveland’s defensive line has also been reinforced, with defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson coming in from the Minnesota Vikings and defensive end Oliver Vernon coming in from the New York Giants.
The Browns might be the most hyped team in the NFL right now. It is expected that the ever pitiful Cincinnati Bengals will remain in the cellar of the AFC North, and the Pittsburgh Steelers have had a highly publicized collapse in the last few months. In fact, aside from the New York Giant’s jettison of talent (including OBJ to the Browns, and their refusal to move past the aging Eli Manning), Pittsburgh might be the only team with a more public change in fortune. For the first time ever, at least in my life time, people are actually talking about the Cleveland Browns going to the Super Bowl. And maybe even winning it. Yes, the same Cleveland Browns who lost sixteen games and won zero just over a year ago.
Will the Browns go all the way? I doubt it. This is still the Cleveland Browns that we’re talking about, they are surely going to disappoint the highest expectations. However, with the AFC North growing weaker and weaker, they have a fighting chance for the first time in years. I can’t see them reaching the big game, but I do expect them to reach the playoffs, either as a wildcard team or (gasp) division winner. The race for supremacy in the AFC North this year will come down to a battle between the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Ravens. Hey, since the Ravens used to be the Browns, this will give the city of Cleveland the chance to get revenge on Art Modell once and for all.
