ESPN did a special broadcast for the NFL’s 2026 schedule release on Thursday night, breaking down each team’s outlook division by division.
The panel had some interesting things to say about the AFC North, like the Bengals being poised for a bounce-back year, and the Steelers finding tough sledding after their Week 9 bye.
When it came time to discuss the Cleveland Browns, however, the commentary shifted. Analyst Peter Schrager, who’s as plugged in as anyone in the industry, took the floor and delivered a short rant. Perhaps most telling was that he didn’t say one thing about Cleveland's 2026 schedule.
Schrager instead delivered a take on the franchise’s mindset that probably has a hint of truth — and that definitely shouldn’t sit well with one of the NFL’s most passionate fan bases.
“If I’m a Browns fan, and this goes for the Jets as well, you want to be competitive, you want to win games — you don’t want to win too many games,” Schrager told his panelmates on the broadcast, repeating that last line for effect. “No, I’m not tanking. It’s none of that. You want to be in contention where you have the ability to move up to get a quarterback in the (2027) draft. Because all the indications that we got in that 2026 draft was: ‘We’re going to build everywhere else with Fano and with Concepcion and with Boston, but we’re not taking a quarterback. We’re not getting Ty Simpson.’ And they didn’t bring anyone in in free agency.
So to me it’s — let’s be competitive, let’s give our fans reason for optimism, and let’s not be too good this year, because our future quarterback might be playing college football on Saturdays.”
The Browns still haven’t escaped the mindset that’s haunted them for decades
There’s no denying the hype and projected talent in the 2027 NFL Draft. From Arch Manning to Julian Sayin to Dante Moore, there’s a chance next year’s quarterback class rivals the 2024 group led by Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, and Bo Nix.
But that’s next year. We’re barely 20 days removed from the 2026 draft. If Browns brass is really hedging for an event that’s 11 months away as Schrager hinted, it won't matter which draft slot they end up with or which quarterback they land. Teams that fail to establish a winning culture will always be losers.
The 2026 Browns obviously aren’t Super Bowl contenders. But could they sneak into the playoff hunt by December? The first couple of months of the season could be a slog, as the NFL gave first-year head coach Todd Monken no grace period, but if Cleveland can lean on one of the best defenses in football, develop its young talent on offense, and hover around .500 entering the second half, there’s a clear path to playing meaningful games down the stretch.
After their road trip to New Orleans in Week 9, the Browns will play a stretch of four consecutive home games, broken up by a Week 11 bye. Even better? Their final eight games of the season will all be played in outdoor venues, including dome teams in the Raiders, Falcons, and Colts coming to Cleveland. If Monken and company can sort out the growing pains on offense and get reasonable quarterback play, they could surprise the Schragers of the world in 2026.
The 2025 Saints might be the perfect comp. New Orleans broke in a first-year head coach in Kellen Moore and struggled to a 2-10 start in 2025. But the offense settled in after Moore made the switch at quarterback to Tyler Shough, and they wound up winning four of their final five games. This Browns season could play out in a similar fashion. They just need to find a way to win a few games in what will be a tough 10-week stretch to open the year.
The only mindset for Cleveland right now should be to galvanize its young roster, get key veterans like Myles Garrett and Denzel Ward fully bought in and believing in the new coaching staff, and win as many games as possible.
Schrager’s “let’s not be too good this year” take is exactly why punching-bag franchises like the Browns exist. When you accept or invite losing in any fashion, there’s no escaping the NFL’s vicious cycle. Browns fans have lived it more than anyone. They watched their team pick No. 1 overall in back-to-back drafts from 2017-18 and still search for answers almost a decade later.
Winning cures all, and the Browns should be doing everything in their power to establish that, starting with OTAs later this month
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