3 potential trap games on the 2023 Cleveland Browns schedule

On Thursday night, the Cleveland Browns schedule was released as the NFL unveiled its agenda for the 2023 campaign. There were leaks throughout the day as we learned quickly the season would begin with a showdown with the Cincinnati Bengals.

It ends with a road trip to Cincy and there are many other exciting games in-between including a Monday Night Football contest against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 2 and an Oct. 15 showdown with the San Fransisco 49ers.

There are also a few trap games to worry about as well. These are games the Browns should win since they're the better team, but in the NFL, that doesn't always equate to winning. On any given Sunday (or Monday, Thursday, Black Friday, etc.) an underdog can come in and upset the superior team, especially if that better team looks past the opponent.

Now with the schedule known, here's a look at three games that could wind up being traps for Cleveland.

No. 3: Arizona Cardinals at Cleveland Browns, Week 9

Cleveland has a road trip out west in Week 8 as they take on the Seattle Seahawks and in Week 10, they travel to Maryland to take on the Baltimore Ravens. Sandwiched between those contests is a home game with the Arizona Cardinals, which feels like the ultimate trap game.

Both Seattle and Baltimore made the playoffs in 2022 whereas the Cardinals were just 4-13. They're also going to be working with a new head coach, Jonathan Gannon, who has his work cut out for him.

Even though this is expected to be a tough season for Gannon and the Cards, Cleveland can't go into this one expecting it to be easy. If they do, this could wind up being a very frustrating outing.