The NFL season is nearly upon us, and there will be football in downtown Cleveland in just three days. Cincinnati comes to town like they did two years ago to kick off the 2025 season with an AFC North showdown.
Here are three key matchups for the Browns' season opener against the Bengals.
3 key matchups for Browns-Bengals Week 1
Browns DBs vs Bengals WRs
In recent history, this has been the matchup to follow between these teams. There's a ton of mutual respect between Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Denzel Ward, and the Browns have done a good job holding those two in check, relatively speaking. Any team wanting to knock off Cincinnati has to slow down its passing game because very few have the playmaking to keep up. Cleveland will run a heavy dose of man, and these defensive backs will need to hold their own to let the pass rush get home.
Browns D-line vs Bengals O-line
The strength and motor of the 2025 Browns is going to be the defensive line, led by Myles Garrett. Back in 2023, the defensive line's ability to wreak havoc and play fast in the opponent's backfield was the driving force behind a playoff campaign. Mason Graham hopes to establish himself as an interior presence to take some attention off the All-Pro pass rusher.
On the other side, Cincinnati isn't known for a tremendously elite offensive line, as the ranked bottom-five in both PFF pass block and run block grade in 2024. They are looking at two new guards, but this isn't expected to be a dominant group this season. If the Browns are going to start the year 1-0, the defensive line will have to win this matchup in a big way.
Browns O-line vs Bengals D-line
This is the easy answer, since it's safe to assume the trenches are the deciding factor in most games. However, the Browns are going to need to be better up front this year if they want any sort of success. Cleveland's offensive line features guys with strong resumes, but four are entering their age-30 season, and left tackle Dawand Jones has had his ups and downs.
On the other side, the Bengals drafted pass rusher Shemar Stewart in round one and retained Trey Hendrickson for the season. Cincinnati's defense was famously bad last year, but they have plenty of talent in its pass-rushing unit with a new defensive coordinator. While the Browns hope to have a dominant defensive game, they are going to need a competent offense to beat the Bengals. That all starts up front with neutralizing the pass rush and establishing the run.