Cleveland Browns Defense Currently On Historic Trajectory
Sometimes it's hard to believe any more that defense wins championships.
The NFL has become such an offensive-minded league that it's difficult to convince yourself that defense can be as impactful as it was 40 years ago.
Perhaps that's what has made the Cleveland Browns start to 2023 that much more impressive.
After beating San Francisco and their high-octane offense Sunday afternoon, the Browns have no allowed only 1,002 yards of total offense through their first five games of the season. That's the third fewest yards that any defense has allowed through the first five games of a year since 1970. Only the 1971 Baltimore Colts (836 yards) and 1970 Minnesota Vikings (945 yards) have better marks.
Oct 15, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (6) tackles San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) as he throws the ball away during the fourth quarter at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
© Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
Of course, the Browns and the city of Cleveland are enjoying Sunday's victory so much because so many people had counted them out. Kevin Stefanski's team was a 9.5-point underdog to one of the best teams in the league. According to Jason Lloyd of The Athletic, the Browns had a record of just 5-70 when they were playing a game they were favored to lose by at least 9 points.
Sunday's win was the first of it's kind since 2010 and only the second time the team had ever done so on its home turf.
Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and the high-flying San Francisco offense came into the day with a perfect 5-0 record and had everyone's attention as a popular Super Bowl pick. Cleveland's win over the 49ers was it's first win over an opponent that entered the game 5-0 or better since November 2, 1969, when they blasted Tom Landry's 6-0 Dallas Cowboys, 42-10.
Ultimately, Cleveland is 3-2 this season and the way you feel about this team largely depends on your perspective of the first five games. The Browns have lost the turnover battle in each of those five games and the two losses were excruciating. Cleveland never should have lost to Pittsburgh in Week 2 and they were embarrassed by Baltimore two weeks later.
Oct 15, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (6) and cornerback Denzel Ward (21) and wide receiver Elijah Moore (8) celebrate after San Francisco 49ers place kicker Jake Moody (not pictured) missed a field goal during the final seconds of the game at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
© Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
That said, the team is nearly through the toughest part of its schedule and has a ton of very winnable games to come over the next three months. Most fans wouldn't have predicted a 3-2 record to come in this fashion, but they probably would have signed up for being a game over .500 in the middle of October.
And thanks largely to Jim Schwartz's league-leading, elite defense, Browns fans feel like a deep run in the playoffs is as possible as it's been in nearly four decades.
