While the Cleveland Browns had an electric win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 12 during primetime, the Browns are obviously not about to now go on some miraculous run to the playoffs, let alone through their remaining schedule.
The rest of the season looks extremely bleak for the Browns. For context, their next and last five games remaining on the year are against the Denver Broncos (6-5), the Pittsburgh Steelers again (8-3), the Kansas City Chiefs (9-1), the Cincinnati Bengals (4-7), the Miami Dolphins (4-6), and the Baltimore Ravens (7-4). Almost all winning teams, and with the exception of the Bengals, teams that are still getting healthier and better than the Browns on paper at the tail end of this season.
As of now, according to Tankathon, the Browns have the fourth hardest remaining schedule - a cruel twist of fate considering how horrendously the first half of the season has already gone.
Cleveland should be trying to lose
That's not a bad thing, though. Sure, it's becoming painfully obvious that Cleveland made a mistake trading for and signing Deshaun Watson to such a ridiculous, guaranteed contract, handcuffing themselves to keeping him on the team despite him being outperformed by Jameis Winston all season long. But, they can still use the draft to their advantage, and the better positioning they have in the draft, the more leverage they have for draft day trades and for selecting players.
Read more: Early 3-Round 2025 mock draft sees Browns cut losses and replace Deshaun Watson
The major positional groups that need addressing in order of importance for the Browns are at offensive line, wide receiver, and quarterback. Their defensive line is still going strong, and their secondary can always improve once again. But, those three positions need to be addressed with cheap rookie contracts given the Watson cap hit.
Players like Will Campbell, Tetairoa McMillan, Jalen Milroe, and Josh Conerly Jr. need to be on Cleveland's radar as surefire ways to shore up their O-line, wide receiving room, and quarterback depth assuming they won't be able to retain Elijah Moore in free agency - or, sign anyone new.
So, losing out or at least losing most of their remaining six games could land them in the top 5 or top 7 in the upcoming draft in April 2025, and with the team finally getting a first round pick again, they'll have a ton of flexibility to either trade back for someone they want or to select exactly who they want wherever they land. Wins like the one over the Steelers are always great at home, as fans deserve to see some wins in a cold, snowy night game. But, the Browns' perogative should not be to make some big postseason push regardless of what players say in their postgame availabilities.