Getty Jacoby Brissett of the Cleveland Browns looks for a pass against the Atlanta Falcons during the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 02, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Considering all the circumstances, the Cleveland Browns have started off this season with admirable on-field efforts, but things only get tougher from here.
The Browns fell on the road against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, October 2, by a score of 23-20 after quarterback Jacoby Brissett threw an interception in plus territory to end the game.
It wasn’t the first time Cleveland has been forced to stomach a tough loss this season, as the New York Jets orchestrated an improbable comeback from 13 points down in Week 2 to steal a win from the Browns in their own building.
But just as the team bounced back from that loss to make relatively easy work of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Brissett said the Browns have tunnel vision as they head into the teeth of their schedule, staring into one of the most difficult seven-game stretches any NFL team will face this season.
“One day at a time. We’re going home from here, so we’re gonna go back, watch the film, get it good with the preparation and whoever we play next … take it one day at a time,” Brissett said. “That’s the mindset that we always talk about. This doesn’t change our plan.”
“For us to look at the remainder of the schedule and say, “This and that and a third,” it’s just not who we are, and we won’t do that,” he added. “So we just gotta go learn from this one and then get ready for next week.”
Browns Play Tough Slate That Includes Bills, Ravens and Bucs
GettyRunning back Nick Chubb of the Cleveland Browns runs with the ball during the fourth quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 2, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
Operating with a short memory and a narrow focus on the next opponent is, perhaps, the only way the Browns will be able to weather their next seven games under Brissett before the return of quarterback Deshaun Watson from his 11-game suspension.
Cleveland hosts the Los Angeles Chargers and star QB Justin Herbert in Week 5 before welcoming in the New England Patriots in Week 6. Those games will be followed by back-to-back division contests, the first on the road against the Baltimore Ravens and the second back in Cleveland against the defending AFC Champion Cincinnati Bengals.
The Browns get a brief reprieve by way of a bye during the first week of November, then go on the road for back-to-back games against the AFC’s early-season elite — visiting the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills. Cleveland returns home for its final game without Watson against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who won the Super Bowl just two seasons ago.
The Browns will welcome Watson back in Week 13 for a road matchup against the Houston Texans, the franchise that traded the quarterback to Cleveland during the offseason.
The Patriots (1-3) are the only team on that seven-game schedule with a losing record, after they fell to the Green Bay Packers by a field goal late in overtime on Sunday, despite playing the majority of the game with third-string rookie quarterback Bailey Zappe.
The Browns’ opponents over that stretch had a cumulative record of 15-13 through four weeks of play, many of them having doled out losses to one another early in the year — for instance, the Dolphins over Bills and the Ravens over the Patriots in Week 3 alone.
Browns Lament Poor Decisions Down Stretch in Loss to Falcons
GettyQuarterback Jacoby Brissett of the Cleveland Browns reacts during a game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 2, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Following Sunday’s disappointing loss in Atlanta, neither Brissett nor his head coach Kevin Stefanski were dwelling on their defeat. But that doesn’t mean they weren’t contemplating what brought it about in an attempt to avoid repeat mistakes in the future.
“We still had a chance at the end, that’s what it comes down to — me making the wrong decision on something,” Brissett told reporters. “We just didn’t do enough. We just didn’t make enough plays down the stretch in those critical situations.”
Stefanski echoed his quarterback’s sentiments during his media session.
“He wants plays back like I want play calls back,” Stefanski said of Brissett. “That’s the frustrating part about this game when you fall short.”
“We just didn’t do enough,” Stefanski added.