The Browns have a quarterback competition and a completely revamped offensive line to sort through but also have a new head coach, the NFL's reigning Defensive Player of the Year and an array of young skill-position talent

Scott Smith

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in the middle of their three-day mandatory minicamp, annually the final step in their offseason workout program. While the focus now is on playbook installation and getting all 91 players on the same page so that competition can begin in earnest in training camp, attention soon will turn to the specific challenges the team will face during the 2026 season. As such, with the schedule now laid out, we are taking a closer look at each opponent on the Bucs' schedule, examining what they did last season, which players and coaches have come and gone in the offseason and some as-yet-unanswered questions. Today's focus is on the opponent for the home opener, a Cleveland Browns team that has a 8-26 record over the past season but a new coaching staff looking to turn things around.

2025 Results

In 2025, the Browns traded quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson to for quarterback Kenny Pickett in March; signed 40-year-old quarterback Joe Flacco in April; selected quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in the middle rounds of the NFL Draft; added former Ravens passer Tyler Huntley in August; waived Huntley three weeks later; traded Pickett to the Raiders at the end of the preseason; added quarterback Bailey Zappe to the practice squad two days later; and traded Flacco to the Bengals in October. They did all this while taking a $36million cap hit to have quarterback Deshaun Watson on the physically unable to perform list.

That kind of quarterback upheaval generally does not portend a successful season, and indeed Cleveland finished 5-12 and in last place in the AFC North. Ownership responded by firing Head Coach Kevin Stefanski after six seasons (and two NFL Coach of the Year awards). Flacco, Gabriel and Sanders all started at least four games, with the team going 3-4 in Sanders starts but winning just once each behind Flacco and Gabriel.

Flacco got the first four starts before being replaced by Gabriel and then traded days later. The Browns went 1-3 in that opening month behind Flacco, with lopsided road losses to Baltimore and Detroit but a notable 13-10 win at home over Green Bay in which neither team gained more than 230 yards. The switch to Gabriel in Week Five led to low-scoring losses to Minnesota and Pittsburgh and the rookie's first win in a 31-6 decision against Miami that included three interceptions by Cleveland's defense, one returned for a touchdown. Gabriel threw only two interceptions in his six starts but also averaged just 93.7 passing yards per game, and Sanders got his shot in Week 12 against Raiders. He completed 11 of 20 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown and one interception and the Browns won, 24-10. However, a four-game losing streak followed before Cleveland closed out its season with wins over Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.

Sanders finished his rookie season with a 7-10 TD-INT ratio, a 56.6% completion rate, a 68.1 passer rating and an average of 175.0 passing yards per game. The Browns' top pass-catcher was rookie tight end Harold Fannin, who caught 72 passes for 731 yards and six touchdowns. Jerry Jeudy snagged 50 passes but no other Browns wideout had more than 21 receptions and the Cleveland passing attack ranked 31st in the NFL. Cleveland was also 27th in rushing offense, with rookie Quinshon Judkins leading the way with 837 yards and seven touchdowns in 14games.

The Browns' defense, with NFL Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett at its center, produced much better results. Cleveland finished fourth in total yards allowed, third in passing yards allowed and third in sacks per pass attempt, as Garrett set an NFL record with 23.0 sacks. Linebacker Devin Bush, a former first-round pick by Pittsburgh, had a breakout season with 125 tackles and three interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Fellow linebacker Carson Schwesinger, the first pick of the second round in 2025, won NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors after combining 156 tackles with 2.5 sacks and two interceptions. Cornerback Denzel Ward went to his fifth Pro Bowl.

2026 Arrivals

As noted, the Browns moved on from Stefanski after the season, but they stayed within the division for his replacement, hiring Ravens Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken for their head job. (Stefanski wasn't out of work long as the Falcons hired him to replace Raheem Morris as their head coach.) Monken has more than 30 years of coaching experience but this is his first head coaching opportunity in the NFL. Over his three seasons as the Ravens' OC, Baltimore racked up the second most net yards, the most rushing yards and the third most points in the NFL in that span.

Monken brought Travis Switzer with him from the Ravens, where he had been the run game coordinator, to serve as his offensive coordinator and brought in former Falcons Defensive Pass Game Coordinator Mike Rutenberg to run that side of the ball.

With most of their offensive line room headed to free agency, the Browns decided to completely overhaul the unit. The only lineman who was re-signed was Teven Jenkins, who started a total of four games in his first season in Cleveland. He has a chance to start at right guard but will have competition.

Meanwhile, the Browns signed former Chargers' first-round pick Zion Johnson to a three-year, $50 million deal in free agency and he could get the call at left guard. After the Packers cut long-time standout and extremely versatile lineman Elgton Jenkins, the Browns swooped in with a two-year, $24 million payout, ostensibly to start at center. Cleveland also traded a fifth-round pick in this year's draft to Houston for right tackle Tytus Howard, another former first-round pick.

The Browns weren't close to done reshaping their offensive front. In the draft, they used the ninth overall pick on Utah's Spencer Fano to play left tackle. This was after General Manager Andrew Berry traded down three spots with the Chiefs and picked up extra third- and fifth-round picks. In the third round, the Browns also selected Florida tackle Austin Barber, who might also compete at guard, and two rounds later they snagged Alabama center Parker Brailsford. Those two will provide much-needed depth at the least but could also push Johnson on Teven Jenkins for starts, particularly since Elgton Jenkins' versatility allows the team to tweak several different spots.

After adding Judkins and Fannin last year and revamping the O-Line this offseason, the Browns' clearest hole on offense was at wide receiver, and that became a focus early in the draft. After using their opening selection on Fano, the team spent the next two on receivers, snaring Texas A&M's KC Concepcion at number 24 and Washington's Denzel Boston at number 39.Concepcion is fast and adept at getting open and is very good at creating yards with the ball on his hands, including as a punt returner. Boston is a big-bodied contested-catch specialists who covers ground deceptively fast with his long strides. The Browns also added depth in free agency with former Raven wideout Tylan Wallace, who had 22 catches over five seasons in Baltimore.

Fullback Michael Burton came over from Denver in free agency, giving Monken an option at that position. The Browns brought in yet another quarterback in the sixth round of the draft, taking Arkansas' Taylen Green, a project as a passer who is extremely fast (4.36-second 40 at the Combine) and who racked up nearly 10,000 passing yards and 2,500 rushing yards in four seasons as a collegiate starter. The team also added tight end depth by taking Cincinnati's Joe Royer in the fifth round and BYU's Carsen Ryan in the seventh.

The Browns could have a couple new starters on defense, as well. They signed former Jet Quincy Williams in free agency as the likely replacement at weakside linebacker for Devin Bush. Williams started for five seasons in New York and was a first-team All-Pro in 2023. Amid their mostly offensive draft, the Browns did get Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, considered a possible first-round choice, at number 58 in the second round. The Browns have Grant Delpit and Ronnie Hickman as starting safeties but plan to use McNeil-Warren in three safety sets to combat the rise of 12 and 13 personnel (extra tight ends) in NFL offenses.

Defensive depth signings in free agency also included former Lions safety Daniel Thomas, former 49ers defensive tackle Kalia Davis and former Texans cornerback Myles Bryant. The fifth round of the draft also brought in Alabama linebacker Justin Jefferson.

2026 Departures

The Browns had six offensive linemen hit free agency (two of whom were cut first) and haven'tre-sign any of them. Guard Wyatt Teller landed in Houston on a two-year, $16 million contract but the other five released tackles Jack Conklin and Cornelius Lucas, plus guard Joel Bitonio, tackle Cam Robinson and center Ethan Pocic have not yet found new NFL homes. Bitonio, a long-time standout on the Cleveland line, announced his retirement on Tuesday; Conklin has not done the same but a return to Cleveland doesn't appear likely.

Williams was needed to replace Bush because the latter turned his best season into a three-year, $30 million deal in Chicago. Cornerback Martin Emerson, who was on injured reserve all of last season but started 33 games from 2022-24, went to New Orleans on a one-year deal. Edge rusher Cam Thomas, who produced 3.5 sacks in 22 games with the Browns, left for the Falcons and, right after the draft, defensive tackle Shelby Harris got a one-year pact from the Giants.

The Browns also cut tight end David Njoku, a former first-round pick who racked up 4,000 receiving yards in nine seasons in Cleveland. Njoku was then signed by the Chargers.

Pressing Questions

Who will be the starting quarterback?

This is the big one, obviously, and if the Browns don't find an answer they like in 2026 they may be asking the same thing heading into next offseason.

In March of 2025, Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam referred to the organization's decision in 2022 to trade three first-round picks to Houston for Deshaun Watson and then give the veteran quarterback a fully-guaranteed $230 million contract, "a big swing and miss." Even so, that contract runs through 2026 and Watson has recovered from two consecutive Achilles tendon tears, which means he will likely get every opportunity to win the starting job. Watson last played in 2024, when he had a 79.0 passer rating and a 1-6 record in seven starts.

Sanders is expected to be Watson's primary competitor for the job after he finished the 2025 season in that role and had a bit more success then fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel. Watson and Sanders have each taken first-team reps during the Browns' offseason program and Monken has been pleased with the work turned in by both so far. Monken has resisted announcing any sort of timeline for the decision to be made, other than the start of the regular season.

Will the revamped offensive line come together?

As detailed extensively above, the Browns did a lot when it came to their offensive line this offseason; now they need to figure out how all the new pieces best fit together. A competent offensive line would allow the Browns their best opportunity to judge the play of their quarterbacks, and the array of new young talent at the skill-position spots could turn the offense as a whole around quickly.

Fano was the first offensive lineman off the board and is both talented and experienced, but he played right tackle at Utah and will now have to make the transition to the left side. That's not always an easy move, especially for a rookie. Likewise, newcomers Johnson and Howard are athletically gifted but have not yet developed into stars at the NFL level after being first-round picks. Elgton Jenkins had a stellar career at Green Bay and can play any position but has dealt with injuries fairly frequently. There's also a pair of mid-round rookies waiting in the wings.

There's a lot to sort through in the Browns' offensive line room, but if the right combination can be found it could be the key to an offensive revival in Cleveland.