The disrespect is becoming a theme. Fox Sports has released their post-schedule power rankings and the Cleveland Browns are sitting at 28th in the NFL, despite the analyst writing the piece essentially acknowledging that everything is set up for this team to succeed.
Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano made the case for Cleveland’s favorable situation while simultaneously burying them near the bottom of the league.
“They have the NFL’s easiest schedule based on last year’s record and travel fewer miles than all but one team. In theory, they have plenty of time to find their way, if they can find a quarterback,” Vacchiano wrote.
The quarterback caveat is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence, and it is the same caveat that every power ranking attaching a low number to Cleveland keeps leaning on. The QB situation is uncertain. Watson emerged from minicamp with an edge. Sanders needs to prove himself. Nobody knows who starts week one in Jacksonville.
Those are all fair points. The quarterback situation is genuinely uncertain and everyone covering this team has acknowledged that openly. But ranking a team 28th in the league while simultaneously telling your readers they have the easiest schedule in the NFL and barely have to travel is a contradiction that is hard to reconcile.
The Browns have a dramatically improved offensive line, an elite defense led by Myles Garrett, and now the easiest schedule in the league, and many are still slotting them near the bottom of the NFL.
Browns fans have seen this movie before. The Browns get disrespected in the offseason and the only place the response can come is on the field.
Week one against Jacksonville is September 13th. The roster is the best it has been in years. The rankings will sort themselves out when the games start.
NEXT: Analyst Gives Browns Fans A Reason To Believe In 2026
