Browns Bye Week and Outlook for the Second Half

The Cleveland Browns are on their bye week and currently two and a half games out of the seventh seed while also half a game from being at the bottom of the barrel in the AFC. It’s an interesting case for Kevin Stefanski. Stefanski is a two-time Coach of the Year while also having a talented team near the bottom of the AFC. Stefanski also made the change a few weeks ago that he would no longer be the primary playcaller.

With Jameis Winston now under center, due to his history, expect Winston to have his fair share of hot and poor performances. Considering Deshaun Watson’s weekly poor performances, Winston has certainly been an upgrade at quarterback. Nick Chubb appears still slowly being integrated into the offense, as he’s coming off a significant injury. The star running back has yet to crack over 20 carries in a game.

On the defensive side of things, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Myles Garrett, appears to not have lost a step, recording seven sacks while constantly seeing double teams and being held to the ground. One thing to note is that Cleveland has no interceptions from their secondary. They had one interception total, from linebacker Jeremiah Owusu Koramoah. Cleveland’s defense remains the same: they want to pass rush with four and play-man coverage on the back end. Cleveland also plays the run conservatively, not loading the box as much and relying on speed to fill the gaps quickly.

As Cleveland comes off their bye week, look for them to play spoiler, especially towards the end of the season. What was supposed to be a hopeful year with Watson and Chubb returning, Cleveland’s Super Bowl window is dwindling down as they lost another year of contention while Garrett remains at his best. In the last few years, Cleveland wasted Chubb’s 2022 season, where he was second in the league in rushing. Cleveland also failed to win a playoff game after having the Defensive Player of the Year and the number-one defense in yards allowed last year.