5 biggest games on the Cleveland Browns 2023 schedule

2. Browns vs. 49ers, Week 6

I considered ranking this as the No. 1 game of the Browns season. There are a number of reasons for this including that Cleveland will be coming off of an early Week 5 bye week and the San Francisco 49ers will be traveling across the country to play a game on an early Sunday afternoon.

The other "elephant in the room" about this game is that Cleveland would have played all three of their divisional foes by this point and after four games if the Browns have a record of 1-3 or 0-4 then this game could be one that has their coach Kevin Stefanski possibly coaching for his job.

No one wants to speculate too early, but if Cleveland struggles out of the gates, as they have the last two seasons under Stefanski's guidance then the fan base by this point in the season will be banging down the doors of Berea, demanding a change at the coaching position.

The Browns and Stefanski must win this one if they come into the contest with a sub-500 record. However, if the Browns come into this came with a 3-1 or 2-2 record then Stefanski is probably safe. The 49ers are one of the premier teams in the NFC and this will be an early season test for the Browns if they want to be considered a challenger in the NFL this season.

1. Browns vs. Bengals, Week 1

We all know that as Browns fans that having our Orange and Brown squad win Week 1 has been nearly impossible since their return in 1999. One year ago, though the team did pull off the win against the Carolina Panthers. What doesn't seem like that huge of an issue has grown into this annual endeavor that challenges this team.

This season the team gets to host the Cincinnati Bengals. Cleveland has played well against them over the last few seasons. That includes a lopsided Halloween Monday Night Football Game a year ago. But the Bengals have been one of the best teams in the NFL for the last couple of seasons.

With the Browns playing all three of their division rivals in the first four weeks of the season, getting a win to start the yearoff could go a long way in giving the team a momentum boost. Both these teams then meet again to close out the season. The circumstances for each team at that point might be very different.

So grabbing the upper hand against their inner state rivals would be a great way to start the season with a bang.