3 critical stretches in Cleveland Browns 2024 schedule

The Cleveland Browns 2024 schedule was released on Wednesday night via an excellent video featuring Deshaun Watson, Denzel Ward, Greg Newsome, and several other stars. The bowling-themed video was light-hearted but still threw some impressive jabs at the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens.

Now that we’ve had some time to pour over the schedule, let's dive in and identify the three toughest stretches. The season is a marathon, not a sprint, but the Browns need to make sure they stay on pace as they run through these gauntlets.

Week 1 and Week 2

Cleveland hosts the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1 before traveling to Florida to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2. That means they'll be taking on two very talented teams to start the season.

The Cowboys are fresh off their third-straight 12-win campaign. They feature an elite defense and Dak Prescott can fill up the stat sheet. Trevor Lawrence is also dangerous and while the Browns knocked off the Jags in 2023, they still pose a major threat. Trevor Lawrence can pick defenses apart when he's on top of his game.

Cleveland doesn't have to go 2-0 but they can’t enter Week 3 at 0-2. 

Week 7-9 home stretch

After going on a three-game road trip, the Browns will head back to Cleveland for three straight contests. They're going to host the Bengals, Ravens, and Chargers before going into their bye week.

Their games against Cincinnati and Baltimore will be their first AFC North showdowns and winning these divisional games will be crucial to their playoff positioning. Cleveland also needs to take advantage of the three matches at home before the bye since three of the first four contests after the break are on the road.

Final Five gauntlet

The final five weeks for the Browns are going to be the worst stretch of the season. They play at home against the Chiefs in Week 15, head to Cincinnati to play the Bengals in Week 16, host the Miami Dolphins in Week 17, and close the season out in Baltimore against the Ravens.

If they want to make a run in the playoffs, they need to prove they can beat the best teams in the AFC. This schedule seems difficult but if they can come out of it with more wins than losses, it will prove they belong — and give them plenty of confidence should they make the postseason.

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