Stefanski still the man

As the Browns scoured the market for their next offensive coordinator in the wake of the surprising cashiering of Alex Van Pelt, the decision on who it would be elicited the following question:

What difference, really, does it make who they choose? It will make no difference -- none whatsoever -- to what the club does on offense for however long Kevin Stefanski owns the title of head coach of the Cleveland Browns.

As long as he's been on the job -- that's four seasons now since taking over for Freddie Kitchens in 2020 -- everything that deals with the offensive side of the football runs through Stefanski. He is the one and only offensive coordinator.

The prolonged musical-chairs search for Van Pelt's successor concluded Sunday with the announcement that Ken Dorsey gets an up-close-and personal look at how Van Pelt wound up back on the street. I still can't figure out why.

This is Stefanski's show. It's his offense, his philosophy, his own personal stamp on how the Browns operate when they own the football. He will continue to call the plays. Van Pelt held the title of offensive coordinator, which, as it turned out, placed him in the crosshairs when things went crooked. 

Was it really his fault the ground game went to crap and became one of the main causal factors in the quick exit from the playoffs? You think maybe the week two season-sending knee injury to Nick Chubb, the best running back in the National Football League, might have had something to do with  that?

Or perhaps an offensive line, when healthy one of the best in the NFL, was ravaged by injuries throughout the season might have had been a factor? What about losing the starting quarterback for a good portion of the season? 

Van Pelt was kept busy all season making adjustments. Yeah it's part of the job, but the overwhelming number of injuries such as as the Browns suffered eventually began taking a toll to the point it began affecting the outcome of games.

Yep, all that (sarcasm alert) was Van Pelt's fault (end sarcasm alert). The only thing that will change on the coaching roster once Dorsey arrives will be the face and name. It will still be Stefanski's show and it wouldn't surprise if he also had a new multi-year contract in his back pocket for the job he did this season.

By tinkering with the offensive staff -- new running backs coach in Duce Staley (maybe he can keep Chubb healthier than Stump Mitchell), new tight ends coach in Tommy Rees, (can't imagine he can improve Pro Bowler David Njoku any more than T.C. McCartney). Stefanski apparently wants his men to hear different voices. 

Now along comes Dorsey, a backup quarterback for the Browns and San Francisco about 20 years ago before becoming a coaching vagabond with Carolina and Buffalo. He became available after the Bills fired him midway through his second season as coordinator this past season. 

And that's a roster that boasts the likes of quarterback Josh Allen, wide receiver Stefon Diggs, running back James Cook and a solid offensive line that stays healthy. And yet they struggled to make the playoffs until Dorsey 

Now the question becomes what does he bring to the Browns that Van Pelt either did not or could not at least to the satisfaction of Stefanski? The Browns don't have anyone like Allen at quarterback. And the Bills' OL is markedly better. Changing faces for the sake of changing faces does not always work.

To his credit, though, Stefanski in the past on occasion took responsibility publicly if he screwed up. Sort of with an "if I had it to do all over again, I might have done it differently" approach. Taking blame works just so often, though.

Time's nearly up.

Someone had to pay

Didn't take long for the Browns to start house cleaning after being unceremoniously booted out of the National Football League playoffs a few days ago.

Say so long and don't let the door . . . on the way out to offensive-coordinator-in name-only Alex Van Pelt, running backs coach Stump Mitchell and tight ends coach T. C. McCartney. Notice they're all on the offensive side of the football.

Team spokesmen referred to the changes as "moving parts", which leaves room for interpretation, suggesting the individuals no longer with the team were at least partially responsible for the rapid exit from the postseason.

Let's not forget they were also responsible for winning 11 games. They must have done something right to pile up all those victories. Working with four quarterbacks in one season is challenging to begin with. You can't say they didn't meet that challenge.

The moves, in light of the success the Browns achieved this past season despite an injury list that would have crushed other teams, immediately reminded me of the cruising industry. Dismissing Van Pelt, Mitchell and McCartney is akin to rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. 

It won't make any difference who the Browns hire to replace them. The entire offense -- and its philosophy -- resides between the ears of head coach Kevin Stefanski. It will not change because Stefanski is stubborn enough to keep trying the same things, this time around with different faces.

He can change the faces all he wants, but the results will not be any different. The great Albert Einstein once said: The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

That's Stefanski, who unsurprisingly will continue to call the plays for the offense in 2023 that piled up 11 victories in spite of losing the best running back in the National Football League in the second game of the season.

He also lost his starting quarterback shortly after and coached a sizable chunk of the season with backups at both offensive tackles. The starting offensive line played just one game together as a unit: The season opener.

Not even the magic of offensive line coach Bill Callahan could provide the necessary ingredients to unlock the one aspect of the game that badly needed to be unlocked. The running game suffered. While Kareem Hunt, Jerome Ford and Pierre Strong Jr. provided a semblance of strong relief at times, Chubb's absence was felt more as the season unfolded.

When Joe Flacco came aboard midway through the season and began shredding opposing defenses with his play-fake and bootleg wizardry, the offense hummed. But opposing defenses soon found out the Cleveland ground game wasn't that special after all and stopped buying the play fakes. 

In the second half of the season, Stefanski basically coached with at least one hand tied behind his back. But it was Van Pelt, Mitchell and McCartney who ultimately paid the price. Wrong place, wrong time. Someone had to pay.

Was the blame misplaced? There are more than a few who believe that was the case. But there are also those who firmly think the season would have turned out differently had injuries not played such a major role in how things eventuated.

Torrid and Horrid

The Browns' 2023 season was replete with stories galore. Most of them had brief shelf lives. But there was always one lurking and every once in a while, one or two gained traction and lingered the entire season. Here are a couple.

The injury list that didn't stop adding up until the Houston Texans rudely bounced them from the playoffs Saturday afternoon to stop the flow has to rank right up there near the top. That alone would have stopped most teams cold and playoffs would have been just another word in the dictionary.

But one other story stood out even more. It arrived about a third of the way through a season that looked doomed and saved it stunningly, paving the way to the postseason. It came gift-wrapped as a 6-6, 245-pound strong-armed 38-year-old quarterback who believed he still had some petrol left in the tank.

He sure did and it didn't take long to capture the attention of a rabid fan base that yearns longingly for just about anything and anyone who can be productive. And when Browns General Manager Andrew Berry lured semi-retired Joe Flacco off his New Jersey couch and back to the NFL, the torch was lit.

The sometimes inconsistent way Flacco played the rest of the way reminded me somewhat of a fictitious character from the pen of 19th-century poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow with regards to behavior. Bear with me here. This will make sense.

Longfellow wrote a short poem about a little girl with varying behaviors. She had a little curl in the middle of her forehead. It goes like this:

There was a little girl,

Who had a little curl,

Right in the middle of her forehead.

When she was good,

She was very good indeed,

But when she was bad, she was horrid.

Flacco reminded me of that little girl, not from a football standpoint of course, but from a behavioral standpoint as a football player. 

How torrid Flacco was when everything clicked, like winning five of his six starts with sensational numbers, and how horrid he was as in the Houston beatdown in the Wild Card round of the playoffs the other day when he threw pick sixes on consecutive possessions that turned a relatively close game -- the Browns trailed by just 24-14 early in the second half -- into a 45-14 deficit in just a half hour.

It's feast or famine with Flacco. There is no gray area here. 

Sure loved the way he played pitch and catch with receivers. The great timing, the tight spirals. Sensational with his play-fake and bootleg games. Enjoyed all those 300+ yard games. Not bad for an old codger. Glad he signed with the Browns even though he played mostly for the dreaded Ravens in his career. 

It was a ten strike. Got the Browns to the doorstep of the postseason. Didn't see that coming once Deshaun Watson hit injured reserve. 

But you hated it -- how often did you shake your head head in frustration? -- when the picks started to pile up. It took a while to find out that's the way he comes packaged. Learn to live with it if there's going to be a next season for him in Cleveland.

And will there be? Head coach Kevin Stefanski pawned that one off on Berry. "I leave all those things obviously to Andrew in this offseason," he said. "I will say this about Joe. He was awesome for this team. He did a great job. Battled like crazy. I know he enjoyed it."

But when he spoke to the media Sunday, he reportedly named Watson as his starting quarterback next season."He's doing great in rehab," he said. "I'm confident he'll be ready to roll. 

How that impacts on Flacco is uncertain. He will be a free agent in a few months and in a position at that time to decide whether to remain with the Browns as a backup to Watson or accept an offer from a team willing to give him another shot at starting. After what he did his season, the guess here is he's gone.

Watson still has three guaranteed years left on his pricy five-year contract. He spent most of this past season idled by a variety of shoulder issues. He started six games, winning five, completed 61.4% of his passes for 1,115 yards with seven touchdown passes and four interceptions.

Right now, the Browns need to focus their attention of figuring out how and why the defense did not show up against the Texans. The secondary played as though they had no clue. Texans receivers were open -- sometimes wide open -- most of the afternoon.

The defensive line, where the pass rush ostensibly begins, didn't help by playing patty-cake with the Houston offensive line. They booked just one hit on Houston quarterback C. J. Stroud by Za'Darius Smith. 

Based on how this season concluded, a lot of work remains. Welcoming back the likes of Nick Chubb, Jack Conklin, Dawand Jones, Anthony Walker Jr., Grant Delpit, Maurice Hurst II, Jedrick Wills Jr. and Rodney McLeod Jr. off injured reserve would be a good start. 

Embarrassing payback

For a couple of weeks when it became apparent the Browns and Houston Texans would have a rematch in the Wild Card round of the National Football League playoffs, we heard all about how different it would be this time.

In the first game about a month ago, the Browns behind Joe Flacco and Amari Cooper, humiliated the Texans on their home turf, 36-22, in an unfair fight. Unfair because rookie Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud missed his only game of the season with a concussion.

That wouldn't have happened with Stroud healthy, we were told. This team is different when he's got the huddle. You'll see this time. He has almost singlehandedly turned fortunes around in East Texas. But he's just one guy.

Most Browns fans know all about Stroud, who led Ohio State to the college championship neighborhood for two seasons and is well on his way to becoming the offensive rookie of the year in the NFL with a brilliant rookie season.

The Browns did, indeed, find out up close and quite personally Saturday that Stroud is the real thing. The laser accuracy. The command of the huddle. The poise in the face of a strong pass rush. A baby-faced kid playing like a seasoned veteran. A special talent. He definitely would have made a difference in the first meeting. 

He didn't have to be special Saturday, though. That's because he brought along his defense. And that unit was extraordinarily special as the Browns were ingloriously booted out of the postseason tournament, 45-14. Stroud just needed to avoid mistakes.

He started early and surgically shredded a pretty good Cleveland secondary for 236 yards and touchdown throws to Nico Collins, Brevin Jordan and Dalton Schultz before halftime. 

It was obvious the Texans were not going to allow Flacco and Cooper to embarrass them this time. Cooper drew extra special attention early and was targeted only twice in the first half.

In the first meeting, Cooper caught 11 balls for a team-record 265 yards and two touchdowns. while Flacco bombed away for 368 yards and a trio of scores. Saturday, the veteran wide receiver was held to four catches for 49 yards and no touchdowns on five targets.

For the first time in a long time, the Browns, who thrived all season on fixing problems mid-game, had no answers this time. It all collapsed due to an offense that became combustible as Flacco finally fell back to earth.

The game blew totally out of control at the beginning of the second half with the Browns trailing, 24-14, when the Cleveland defense watched helplessly as the offense imploded and helped the Texans put 14 gift-wrapped points on the board in a 10-minute game-clock span courtesy of consecutive pick sixes by Steven Nelson (82 yards) and Christian Harris (36 yards). 

Flacco was due for something like his. His calling card also included interceptons. We  accepted that because he piled up the victories anyway. But in the past couple of months, many of his picks were the fault of the receivers running incorrect routes. These were just careless throws Saturday. 

In a way it's sort of sad go see him bow out like this after all he did to boost the Browns to the playoffs. He put charge into a team that was struggling when he arrived. Not many quarterbacks, especially at the age of nearly 39, could have done what he did.

If nothing else, this will make General Manager Andrew Berry's job easier in the offseason with regard to who the Cleveland quarterback will be next season. Barring totally unforeseen circumstances, it will be Deshaun Watson, and No, I don't think Flacco would accept a backup role. 

This loss cannot be blamed on injuries, past or present. No, this is the kind of game where you tip your hat because the Texans flat out outplayed the Browns in every phase. At other times this season, they won games they didn't deserve to win.

Flacco couldn't have picked a worse time to be flat. It didn't help that he didn't have the luxury of a strong running game to make his play-fake game that much more effective and dangerous. It's at times like these that the Browns miss Nick Chubb . . . and Jack Conklin . . . and Dawand Jones.

That's a subject to be taken up in the offseason, which came a little too quickly this year.                                                       

Gonna get better

It's right there in the injury report for wild-card weekend as the 2023 National Football League playoffs commence. 

In the only game that matters to Browns Nation, the Houston Texans placed 11 players on that report after Friday's practice, seven limited and designated as questionable with only one (defensive end Jerry Hughes) ruled out for Saturday's game.

The Browns should be so fortunate. Numbers like that were a weekly occurrence during the regular season. And now after 17 games, they have hit the injury jackpot. 

They doubled the Texans with 22 names on their report, 14 of whom fully participated Friday. That list included wide receiver Amari Cooper and defensive tackle Shelby Harris, who are expected to play. Cornerback Denzel Ward, who tweaked a knee in practice Wednesday, is listed as questionable after a limited practice.

Definitely out for the Browns are safety Grant Delpit (groin), wide receiver Cedric Tillman (concussion) and kicker Dustin Hopkins (hamstring). 

Bottom line: Advantage Browns. And why not?

They've played just about the entire season with vital contributors in all phases of the game who have been sidelined at one time or another for various stretches of time picked up by their brethren on the bench. This team somehow found ways to win. It's a bit of a cliche, but this team numerous times this season refused to lose.

They made plays at crucial junctures of games that ultimately led to a victory. When the game was on the line, everyone took turns coming through. Hopkins with all those clutch field goals is a perfect example.

When he came on board after Cade York kicked himself out of Cleveland, Hopkins arrived with a career percentage of less than 50% on field goals from 50 yards or more. He's been perfect from that distance, winning several games in the final seconds.

You don't get to 11-6 in the regular season by accident. The Browns did it the hard way at times by (1) imposing their will on the opposition and (2) ramping up their skill level with regard to reaching back for that little extra and overachieving, all the while utilizing five different quarterbacks. 

Even the oddsmakers are convinced. The game's in Houston. Rookie quarterback C. J. Stroud, who was sidelined a few weeks ago when the Browns rolled the Texans, 36-22, is back and yet the Browns are favored by 2.5 points.  

Stroud, who has the NFL offensive rookie of the year award all but locked up, hasn't faced a defense quite like the Browns'. You can bet he'll get plenty of intel from Case Keenum and Davis Mills, who were sacked three times in the earlier game.

Stroud will find out he can expect plenty of company at any time and from just about anywhere on the field from Jim Schwartz's bag of tricks. And don't expect zone looks from a team that thrives on man and press coverage. 

Stroud achieved a large portion of his success early on with 5-9 rookie wide receiver Tank Dell, who caught 47 passes for 409 yards and seven touchdowns in his first 11 games before going down with a broken leg.

Nico Collins has stepped up and become more dangerous in a big way. The 6-4 wideout checks in with 80 grabs for 1,297 yards and eight touchdowns. Look for 6-2 Cleveland cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. to draw this assignment with Ward questionable at best.

Stroud lately has also discovered the talents of tight end Dalton Schultz in short-yardage situations that help sustain drives. That's a situation that could come to light considering the Browns have had problems this season with tight ends.

The one big difference the Cleveland offense faces this time is a Texans pass rush that was not at full strength last time. Edge rushers Jonathan Greenard and Will Anderson Jr., who have accounted for 20 of the 46 Houston sacks, are healthy.

Their targets are the Browns' biggest weakness on offense: Tackle, where free-agent left tackle Geron Christian Sr. and second-stringer James Hudson III hang out. They are most effective when the football is out of the quarterback's hand within three seconds. Anything longer generally results in a negative play.

In the overall big picture for this one hovers one Cleveland weapon that can overcome any and all deficiencies. He's why -- the defense is I-A -- the Browns are alive and in position now to go where no Cleveland Browns team has ever been.

Joe Flacco has been nothing short of otherworldly since being freed from forced semi-retirement because several NFL teams that needed a quality quarterback passed on him and no doubt are regretting it in stunned silence.

The Browns are three victories away from the Super Bowl because of him. In five games, he has thrown for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns, eight picks and delivered four straight games of 300+ yards. He has made tight end David Njoku a Pro Bowler. He has made Cooper a Pro Bowler for the fifth time.

He has brought not just a spark and a belief in this team, but a feeling of pride to the City of Cleveland. As unbelievable as this reads, this former Baltimore Ravens quarterback, who has brought so much misery to the city and fandom in the past, is crafting quite a story.

Where and when will it all end? It won't be Saturday down in Houston.

The Cleveland defense comes alive after last weekend's meaningless slog in the Cincinnati regular-season finale and shows Stroud what he missed the first time around with at least two sacks from Myles Garrett &. Co. and a pick by Emerson. Flacco won't extend his 300+ yard streak to five games. He'll get something more important. A victory and an invite to the next round: The Divisional championship. Make it:

Browns 27, Texans 23

Monday leftovers

If there was one thing you could count on from the Browns this season, it was failing to master football security. On a weekly basis. 

As in holding on to the prolate spheroid. Not gifting the opposition with it. Makes it a whole lot easier to win football games.

Ball discipline, of which the Browns had next to none and yet finished with an 11-6 record this season, made the season very interesting. Too interesting, in fact. 

Lack of discipline prevented this team from seriously challenging for the AFC North championship. The talent was there. But carelessness followed them all season, which made it hazardous at best, downright frustrating at worst.

Fans never could get comfortable because they never knew when a lost fumble or interception would arrive without warning and blow up a promising possession. That unpredictability is what gave rise to the brilliance of the defense, which gained a large part of its solid reputation by putting out fires.

It shouldn't surprise anyone, then, that this playoff-bound team led the National Football League in turnovers this season with 37, three more than runner up Minnesota. They're the only playoff team in the top eight in that category. Right up on top. 

They also lead the NFL in interceptions with 23 and finished fourth in lost fumbles with 14. How in the world did this team get here? Simple. The arrival of Joe Flacco gave them something they didn't have previously: The ability to simply outscore opposing teams.

Sure the old quarterback throws interceptions. Eight in five games to be exact. But he has also thrown for 13 touchdowns in those give games. Only he can fix what needs to be fixed. The others did not and that's the difference.

Historic defense made the Browns competitive in the first half of the season when they had problems winning games with an offense that frankly was barely mediocre at best. Since his arrival, fans are justifiably confident the odds of losing have fallen significantly.

At the bottom of the turnovers list, by the way, or the team with the fewest turnovers in the NFL this season: The stingy Houston Texans with 14 turnovers. Yep, Saturday's playoff game in Houston game will feature the league's worst team with ball security against the best. 

The defense for this one will be the most important unit for the Browns. They'll need to set the tone in what promises to be a battle waged through the air between two dangerous quarterbacks whose reputations are rooted in throwing the football.

How they start with the benefit of a game day off against Cincinnati a few days ago will likely determine the direction this game heads. Jim Schwartz's men need to be sharp against C.J. Stroud, who has helped turn around the team culture in Houston.  

***

Breaking down the Browns' woes on offense: The gifting problems arose immediately with 10 in the first four games and lasted the entire season. The next three outings produced seven more. The only week with nary a turnover turned out to be the week nine 27-0 perfecto against the Arizona Cardinals at home. There were a few games with just one giveaway. It was uphill practically the entire season. But it sure got them ready for the money games. 

Hey, it was just the JV

If nothing else, Browns fans found out Sunday what the Browns look like when absolutely nothing is on the line: The junior varsity. The varsity was on the bench for both sides of the football, benched by the head coach but with an invitation to the playoffs securely put away.

As a result, the Cincinnati Bengals practically waltzed through a ridiculously easy 31-14 victory to bring the regular season to a close Sunday. But that's okay. Can't imagine anyone really thought the Browns would win their fifth straight game. 

So, is it time to start getting worried all over again about Team Chaos because of this? Don't think so. Chances are pretty good the result of this one has already been forgotten. 

Under the circumstances, though, this was as bad as it could have been. The only mystery leading up to the game was how competitive those who got a chance to play would be. It was apparent early on the Bengals had nothing to worry about. 

First possession for the Browns, third play of the game. Interception. Been there before. This time, help would never arrive. They were merely spectators while in uniform on the sidelines, benched by their head coach.

Defensively, the Browns forced six punts, but had problems corralling veteran Bengals running Joe Mixon, who piled up 86 yards and two touchdowns by halftime. Jake Browning, filling for the injured Joe Burrow, chipped in with touchdown passes to Mixon and a pair to rookie wide receiver Andrei Iosivas.

The Browns. who finish the season at 11-6, had no answers offensively until it was too late. It was so bad, at one point, the likelihood of being shut out became a possibility. The Bengals held a 31-0 commanding early fourth-quarter lead. 

The last time the Browns were held scoreless was on Dec. 14, 2014 by the Bengals, 30-0. The quarterback for the Browns was Johnny Manziel.

The Cleveland offense had trouble Sunday getting beyond midfield until the second half, racking up just four first downs and a measly 41 yards in the first 30 minutes. Jeff Driskel's Browns debut at quarterback couldn't have gone any worse. Four for 10 for 37 yards in that span and picks by Jordan Battle and Logan Wilson. 

It took him three quarters to get comfortable, throwing for 111 of his 166-yard total in the final 15 minutes and making the final score look more respectable with a pair of touchdown passes to wide receiver David Bell.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski made certain the varsity would be healthy and ready to begin the games that really count next weekend down in Houston against the AFC South champion Texans. These teams played in Houston just a few weeks ago, the Browns emerging with a 36-22 victory.

The situation will be quite different this time. Houston rookie quarterback C. J. Stroud was sidelined with  a concussion in that one with ex-Browns QB Case Keenum and Davis Mills filling in. They didn't stand a chance.

Joe Flacco, in his fourth game with the Browns, plundered the Houston secondary for 368 yards and  touchdown throws to Jerome Ford, David Njoku and two to Amari Cooper while racing out to 36-7 lead entering the final quarter. Two late touchdowns in garbage time made the final look better than it was.

This time, though, the former Ohio State star will be ready. The favorite to win rookie-of-the-year honors has already thrown for 4,100 yards, 23 touchdowns and only five interceptions. 

It should be the classic matchup of the young phenom against one of the best defenses in the National Football League. It will be interesting to see what difference the varsity Browns defense will make this time.

After the dyspeptic game defensive boss Jim Schwartz suffered through in Cincinnati, he probably can't wait to get back all those who were major contributors to the enormous success his defense has enjoyed this season.

Those guys who were spectators Sunday in Cincinnati.

On to the playoffs

One of the mantras for the Browns this unique season involved the bench, the plug uglies who are rarely part of game plans. As a general rule, they await their turn until they hear, often times without warning, "next man up."

But this season, the general rule lasted practically the entire season and the next men up performed so well, they helped the Browns return to the postseason. And Sunday down in Cincinnati, their contributions will be rewarded with reps in the season finale against the Bengals.

Sitting at 11-5 with a fifth seed that will not change no matter who wins this game enables head coach Kevin Stefanski to rest a vast majority of his starters and a few other major contributors in what amounts to a meaningless game.

(It's not meaningless to history, though. If the Bengals win and finish the season at 9-8, the AFC North becomes the first NFL division since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 to finish with every team over .500.)

Don't look for regulars like Myles Garrett, Joe Flacco, Amari Cooper, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Denzel Ward, most of the offensive and defensive lines, linebacker corps, and most of the secondary and receiving corps. It's time to find out what the lower level of the roster looks like, including call-ups from the practice squad can do. Pretty certain they won't consider it meaningless.

Besides, the Bengals arrive with revenge on their minds. The 24-3 shellacking the Browns delivered in Cleveland to open the 2023 season has not been forgotten. That's the game in which the Cleveland defense quickly captured the attention of the National Football League universe. 

The Bengals compiled only six first downs, 142 total yards, were two for 15 on third down and Joe Burrow threw for just 82 yards. It was also the game Dustin Hopkins introduced himself to Browns Nation with four field goals. Hopkins (hamstring) will not kick Sunday.

Deshaun Watson ran 13 yards in the second quarter for one score and connected with tight end Harrison Bryant from three yards to close out the scoring.

Burrow went down with a wrist injury for the season midway through the season and was replaced by Jake Browning, who excited Bengals fans by winning three straight against Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Minnesota before falling to Pittsburgh and Kansas City on the road.

Replacing Flacco at quarterback is 30-year-old Jeff Driskel, a journeyman who was recently plucked off the Arizona Cardinals' practice squad and placed on the Cleveland active roster. Kind of like this move even though Driskel's resumé is not exactly what you would call distinguished.

He is 1-9 as an NFL starter, but appealed to the Browns through his connection to Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzig, who was the Browns' quarterback coach last season and runs a similar offense to the Browns'.

And right now, even though we haven't seen him take a snap, he's already better than P. J. Walker, who unbelievably was 1-1 as a starter with the Browns this season, and not-ready-yet rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

On Driskel's radar Sunday will be Cedric Tillman, James Proche, David Bell, Marquise Goodwin, Auston Watkins Jr. and tight ends Jordan Akins and Bryant. Wouldn't be surprised if Elijah Moore gets a day off to give his concussion an extra week to heal.

The ground game most likely will be divided among Kareem Hunt, Pierre Strong Jr. and John Kelly Jr. with Jerome Ford, who has been a major part of the offense lately in both phases of the position, given the afternoon off.

The Bengals, meanwhile, are disgustingly healthy. Wide receiver Tee Higgins is the lone major player who won't suit up. He's doubtful with a hamstring. 

The Cleveland defense can expect to see a lot of running back Joe Mixon behind a large offensive line, and wideouts Ja'Marr Chase and Tyler Boyd lurking in the secondary. Linebackers Owusu-Koramoah and Sione Takitaki, who have played strong football the last few months, are prime candidates to get the afternoon off. 

The Browns' offensive line will have its hand full with edge rushers Sam Hubbard and Trey Hendrickson, who have feasted against starters in recent years, working Sunday against a couple of backups. 

Normally, this would be a difficult pick because these teams are so evenly matched. But there's been nothing normal bout this season. With that in mind and the situation at hand, the Browns' four-game winning streak ends. Browning throws for two touchdowns (Chase and Boyd), Mixon runs for one and the defense sacks Driskel four times and picks him off twice. Revenge complete. Make it:

Bengals 27, Browns 14

For what it's worth

As it stands now, the Browns are on a playoffs course that could propel them to a third game this season against the top-seeded Baltimore Ravens. Of course that would require a few other eventualities, but the way this season has unfolded, just about anything regarding this team is possible.

Here is how it could all come down.

The fifth-seeded Browns' opponent in the wild-card round on the road will be the winner of the AFC South, which is locked in a three-way tie for the lead heading into the final week of the regular season this weekend. The Jacksonville Jaguars hold the tie-breaker over Indianapolis and Houston.

Cleveland swept the division during the regular season, knocking off Tennessee and Jacksonville at home and Houston and Indy on the road. They did it mostly with offense, averaging 29.5 points a game with Deshaun Watson and P. J. Walker helming the first two games and Joe Flacco in charge of the final two.

What follows is presupposing a Browns victory. 

Flacco stays on course with his sizzling Cleveland career and advances the Browns to the divisional round against the highest-seeded AFC team. That would be the top-ranked team in the AFC: Baltimore, which drew a bye in the opening round.

The Browns and Ravens met twice duding the regular season, each winning on the road. The Ravens humbled the Browns' defense, which stormed through the first three games of the season in historic fashion, with Lamar Jackson throwing for two scores and running for two more in a 28-3 victory.

The Cleveland offense had no chance with Dorian Thompson-Robinson, subbing for an injured Watson, looking very much like a fifth-round rookie quarterback making his first National Football League start.

The two teams met again in week 10 in Baltimore in a game that was pretty much a microcosm of the season because of the manner in which the Browns became relentless, demonstrating a never-give-up-approach to games that turned potential losses around.

The Ravens jumped out to the lead when safety Kyle Hamilton picked off Watson mere seconds into the game and romped 18 yards for the touchdown. They built the lead to 24-9 early in the third quarter on a Jackson-Odell Beckham Jr. connection and pushed it to 31-17 on a short Gus Edwards run with nine minutes left.

Just when it appeared it was going to be yet another Ravens victory, in this lopsided series, the Browns pulled off the kind of comeback Browns Nation has seen all too often from opponents. It began with Watson and Elijah Moore, who had been somewhat of a disappointment this season, collaborating on a 10-yard scoring strike to culminate a seven-play, 75-yard drive.

Minutes later, Greg Newsome II picked off Jackson and returned it 34 yards for the score to pull the Browns to within a point, but the usually reliable Dustin Hopkins shockingly missed his first point-after of the season. Nothing comes easy with this team.

The Cleveland defense stiffened on the next possession and forced a punt with 4:55 left. It took 11 plays to move the football to the Baltimore 22-yard line, bleeding the clock along the way with a variety of short to medium throws and the running of Jerome Ford and Kareem Hunt. Hopkins gained his redemption with a right-down-the-middle field goal from 40 yards as time ran out.

That was the last time this season the 13-3 Ravens have been on the wrong end of the final score. That was six games ago. Since then, they have defeated several elite teams rather handily behind an elite defense and a dangerous offense led by the spectacular Jackson.

And now the distinct possibility exists that Flacco will get a chance to face his old team in Baltimore in what would be one of the wonderfully dramatic games of the season considering what he has done for not only the Browns, but the city of Cleveland this season.

It would be the second time he faced the Ravens, and the first in Baltimore. He was in his third season with the Jets when he faced them for the first time in the 2022 season opener, a 24-9 loss in New Jersey in what turned out to be a very busy afternoon. He attempted 59 passes and completed 37 for 309 yards, one touchdown and one pick. 

What Sunday's regular-season finale in Cincinnati with regard to who plays and who sits in that game is anybody's guess. There's nothing to gain or lose. The guess here is head coach Kevin Stefanski starts his regulars for a possession or two and then gives the bench big minutes.