The Cleveland Browns and their fans may be looking for any reason they can find to believe that their team can defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road to open their 2026 season. Coming off eight wins combined over the past two seasons, with a quarterback who hasn’t played in almost two years, reasons for pessimism abound.
The betting odds seem to agree, as the Browns are one of the biggest underdogs on the opening slate. But there are some legitimate reasons to feel good about their chances.
A couple of statistics show why Browns fans should be encouraged about Sunday’s game, with Deshaun Watson undefeated as a starter against his former AFC South rivals, and the Browns’ defense on what could be a historic pass-defense streak.
“Week one prediction: Cleveland 23, Jacksonville 17. Browns won three straight against Jacksonville. Deshaun Watson is 7-0 in his career against the Jaguars. The Browns haven’t allowed a 300-yard passer in 45 straight games. Todd Monken starts it off with a W,” Brad Stainbrook posted.
Week one prediction: Cleveland 23, Jacksonville 17#Browns won three straight against Jacksonville. Deshaun Watson is 7-0 in his career against the Jaguars. The Browns haven’t allowed a 300-yard passer in 45 straight games. Todd Monken starts it off with a W. pic.twitter.com/V1N78LN6LM
— Brad Stainbrook (@StainbrookNFL) September 12, 2026
The Browns don’t have to look too far back to find success in Jacksonville. With Watson at quarterback, Cleveland won 18-14 in Week 2 of the 2024 season.
The veteran’s only loss to the Jaguars came in relief as a rookie making his NFL debut with the Houston Texans. In his seven starts against them, he has 11 total touchdowns (eight passing, three rushing) and a passer rating of 94.6.
That could be one of the main reasons Todd Monken chose Watson to start this game over Sanders, even though the Cleveland head coach said he didn’t watch any film of the quarterback from earlier in his career. Going back even further, Jaguars defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile revealed he didn’t have much success against Watson while he was at Boston College and the QB was at Clemson.
On defense, the Browns are just eight games away from setting an NFL record for most games without allowing a 300-yard passer, a mark that is held by the Indianapolis Colts. Cleveland has not done so since Week 7 of the 2023 NFL season, when Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew threw for 305 yards in a Browns victory, and they held Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence to 220 yards in their 2024 win.
So, if the Browns can capitalize on these potential advantages, they can join the long list of big Week 1 surprises in NFL history.
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