NFL analysts and pundits spend an extraordinary amount of preseason time trying to predict how a season will go.
Perhaps the Cleveland Browns 2023 campaign is the best example of why it is a largely worthless endeavor.
Nobody expected the team to count on a former Ravens Super Bowl hero down the home stretch.
And as Cleveland Sports personality Nick Pedone notes, things have gone awry for the Browns’ next 3 opponents, too.
The Browns will face 3 backup QB’s for their remaining opponents.
Potential remaining Browns opponents:
🏈 Case Keenum
🏈 Zach Wilson
🏈 Jake Browning— Nick Pedone (@NickPedone12) December 20, 2023
Back in August, it looked like the Browns would face the NFL’s top-rated rookie quarterback in Week 16.
And they would end the season defending against potential Pro Bowlers in Aaron Rodgers and Joe Burrow.
Instead, Cleveland’s run of unexpected, and maybe a little lucky, breaks continue.
Houston will turn to former Browns backup QB Case Keenum this week as C.J. Stroud recovers from a concussion.
Rodgers (achilles) and Burrow (wrist) are done for the season after serious injuries.
New York is slated to start Zach Wilson, although they might slide Trevor Siemian into the mix.
And Cincinnati is rolling with Jake Browning, technically a rookie after bouncing around practice squads for 4 years.
Cleveland, sitting at 9-5 behind 4 starting QBs, is not likely to take anybody else’s backup quarterback lightly.
That is especially true of Browning, whose solid play put Zac Taylor’s name in Coach of the Year conversations.
Keenum brought the Texans back from a 4th-quarter deficit to score an overtime win over the Titans last week.
And Wilson had a 300-yard game to beat Houston in Week 14.
But Keenum-Wilson-Browning still won’t affect Jim Schwartz’s sleep patterns like Stroud-Rodgers-Burrow might.
NEXT: Analyst Explains Why Browns Can Make A 'Miracle Run'
