This year, the Cleveland Browns made it to the playoffs for the first time since 2020. And in true Cleveland Browns fashion, they promptly got their butts kicked.
The Browns making it to the playoffs this year was impressive considering how plagued the team was with injuries. Star running back Nick Chubb went down in Week 2 against Pittsburgh, tearing both his ACL and MCL. Starting QB Deshaun Watson suffered a displaced fracture in his shoulder in Week 10 against Baltimore. The Browns even lost kicker Dustin Hopkins to injury.
Despite the various injuries (and an incident where tight end David Njoku accidentally burned himself in a backyard bonfire gone wrong), the Browns were able to clinch the number five seed in the playoffs. This feat is even more impressive when you consider the fact that this season consisted of five different quarterbacks, bringing the number of starting quarterbacks since the Browns returned to Cleveland in 1999 to 38.
But it is quarterback 37 who took the Browns all the way to the playoffs. Fresh off his couch, at age 38, came former Super Bowl MVP, Joe Flacco. The signing of Flacco late in the season intrigued Browns fans as rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson Robinson (DTR) was doing well and fans had started to warm up to him. Initially it was thought that Flacco was added to be a mentor to DTR, so not many expected to see him play. Nor did they expect him to be as good as he was. However, when DTR went down with a concussion, Flacco, who hadn’t played a game since Week 18 with the Jets in 2022, stepped up to the plate.
While Flacco stepped up, the same cannot be said for the Browns defense. Many had picked the Browns to win their wildcard game, not just because of Flacco (who had never lost a wildcard game), but because the Browns were arguably the best defense in the league. Led by edge rusher Myles Garrett and new defensive coordinator (DC) Jim Schwartz, who won the Super Bowl in 2018 with the Eagles, the defense looked unstoppable. But that unstoppable defense did not show up at all in the wildcard game against the Houston Texans. Between a lackluster defense and two interceptions from Flacco late in the game, the Browns lost 45-14.
Despite the embarrassing and early dismissal from the playoffs, two players and two coaches are up for awards during the NFL Honors show (which will happen during the week of the Super Bowl). Joe Flacco is a finalist for Comeback Player of the Year, Myles Garrett is a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year, Jim Schwartz is a finalist for Assistant Coach of the Year, and head coach Kevin Stefanski is a finalist for Coach of the Year. So, while the Browns aren’t winning a Super Bowl this year, there is still a glimmer of hope for Browns fans that at least one of these finalists will take home their respective award. Besides, as we say in Cleveland, there’s always next year.
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