4 big takeaways from Browns win over the Texans in Week 16

3. Browns proved they can win on the road

Coming into this game, the Browns were just 2-4 on the road this season compared to 7-1 at home. That's fine for making the playoffs but since they're not in first place in their division, winning on the road is going to be very important. As the potential No. 5 seed, they're going to be doing some traveling — assuming they do get in.

Their last two road games were against the Denver Broncos and then the Los Angeles Rams — and each were losses. To be fair, they had a shot in the Denver game until Dorian Thompson-Robinson was injured. Against the Rams, Joe Flacco was making his first start and they simply didn't have the answers for their offense late in the game.

Flacco did lead them to back-to-back wins following that loss — both at home against the Jaguars and Bears. But this weekend, they were able to drop 36 points on the road. They even did so despite losing their kicker in the first half and punter in the second.

Overcoming adversity has been their calling card this season so that wasn't a huge deal — it would be for most teams but for the 2023 Cleveland Browns, it's another day at the office. The win on the road was much larger for them. Now at 3-4, they should have more confidence if they're taking on an opposing playoff team in hostile territory. Especially considering all three wins were against playoff-caliber teams (Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, and the Texans).