The Opening Drive 11/29: The Browns Are Still "In The Hunt" For Now
The Browns can play like they still have a chance in what has become an odd season in the AFC North.
It doesn’t feel like the Browns should still be in the playoff conversation. Not with the injuries, not with the quarterback carousel, not with the offense looking abysmal all season long, and it’s likely they aren’t long for this conversation, so let’s take advantage of it while we can.
The Browns remain alive in the AFC postseason race, and the pathway isn’t nearly as far-fetched as the current frustration around the team suggests. In a conference where no one in the middle has pulled away, the Browns don’t need a miracle. They just need a stretch of competent football, something that has eluded them, but not something impossible.
Every year, the back end of the AFC Wild Card picture turns into a pileup of flawed teams. This season, it’s even more chaotic. With a win against the 49ers this Sunday at home, the Browns would be sitting just two games behind the Ravens, and potentially the Steelers, if they were to lose to the Bills this weekend. Most of the better teams in the AFC have failed to separate from the pack, and most have lacked any real consistency.
The record may not look pretty, but Cleveland isn’t chasing juggernauts. They’re chasing teams that lose as often as they win, teams with just as many issues, and schedules just as tricky. The Browns are certainly in the mud, but so are many of the teams hanging on to playoff hopes at .500 or worse.
You don’t believe me.…Check out this image caught on NBC’s coverage after the Bengals’ win over the Ravens on Thanksgiving night.
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A Schedule That Still Offers An Opportunity
The remaining slate matters, and the Browns still have winnable games ahead. Of their remaining opponents, the team playing the best football right now is the Bears. They play four of their final six at home, where the defense has been elite all year. These are games where the defense can drag the opponent into a low-scoring fight and hope the offense can exceed the bare minimum; however, that has eluded them for almost two seasons now. If this team gets to 20–23 points in those games, they can win more often than not.
A Defense Playing Special Football
Whatever has gone wrong on the offensive side of the ball, the defense still gives this team a chance each week. They reduce explosives, they win in the red zone, they create relentless pressure on opposing quarterbacks, and they consistently hold opponents under control for long stretches.
If the offense stops handing opponents short fields and gifting momentum swings, the Browns are in virtually every game they play.
The Shedeur Sanders X-Factor
This late in the season, every team can use a spark. The Browns are hoping Shedeur Sanders can be that for them. He doesn’t need to be perfect. He doesn’t need to be a savior. What he can’t be is just as bad is reckless. If he delivers: quick decisions, functional pocket movement, the ability to hit the layups, and a handful of third-down conversions, then the Browns’ offense instantly looks better than it has. With this defense, “competent” is enough to give them a real shot every week.
Shedeur raising the floor even slightly changes the entire complexion of December football. It turns blowout losses into coin-flip games and puts the Browns in a position where one bounce, one turnover, one penalty, or a fluky play can be the difference between winning and losing.
The Bottom Line
The Browns are not dead. They may have looked dead at times, but there is still a narrow path. It all starts with beating a legitimate team like the 49ers on Sunday, which would pull them even with the Bengals at 4-8, and they are suddenly on that “In The Hunt” graphic for another week, while they host the Titans. I know this sounds mad, but it had to be pointed out in a year that has seen so many teams play middling football and in a season in which the AFC North is wide open.
Browns Film Breakdown will return soon with more college football insights.
Seeing the browns on the in the hunt graphic hit like crack, really fired me up for the run in. Annoying to think ifthey couldve closed out the bengals and vikings games. Not to mention throwing away the Jets game.