It is Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season, and that means it’s time to kick start a lot of our weekly features again, including where the Cleveland Browns stand in the eyes of the national media. With the quarterback situation the way it is and the departure of Myles Garrett, it’s understandable that the Browns have an average ranking of 30.6 heading into the season. Rightfully so, the Browns need to prove themselves before getting any form of respect in these rankings.
Here is a summary of how the Cleveland Browns are viewed across mainstream media outlets in NFL Power Rankings heading into Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season.
CBS Sports - No. 31
They have talent on their roster. They just don’t have a quarterback. The good news is the college draft will be loaded with them next year.
ESPN - No. 31
Milestone to watch: The Browns’ defense breaking the record for consecutive games without allowing a 300-yard passer.
The Browns have gone 45 straight games without allowing a quarterback to throw for 300 yards, the longest streak in the NFL since the Colts went 52 games from 2005 to 2008. Cleveland could break the record in Week 8, a road matchup against the Steelers. The defense, though, will have to achieve the milestone without reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett and with a new coordinator in Mike Rutenberg.
NFL.com - No. 30
The Browns found a way to unite their fans in disgust by naming Deshaun Watson the starter two days after he was lustily booed during a ghastly performance on his home field. I expect a change under center by Week 3, which should tell you how I think Cleveland will fare in the first two contests of 2026 (road games at Jacksonville and Tampa Bay).
Sporting News - No. 32
The Browns lost Garrett and are hoping they can find some return pop in Jared Verse, but the defense is bound to be weakened overall without the tone-setting leader, which isn’t good news for a toggling-QB offense.
Yahoo Sports - No. 30
Everything has been said about Deshaun Watson starting at quarterback. It’s a weird, bad decision. That detracts from the exciting young talent on the rest of the team. Keep a close eye on rookie receiver KC Concepcion, a first-round draft pick who will contribute a lot right away.
Bleacher Report - No. 30
Our experts all seem to agree that the Cleveland Browns are a bottom-tier team, and that probably says more about their quarterback situation than anything else. The Browns have some talented young players on their roster and the bones of a defense that ranked fourth overall last season—with Jared Verse trying to replace the departed Myles Garrett.
Even with Garrett leading the defense, though, Cleveland couldn’t notch more than five wins, in large part because of bad quarterback play. The return of Deshaun Watson doesn’t really improve the Browns’ QB situation, and the looming 2027 quarterback class could eventually leave Cleveland searching for fewer wins than it got a year ago.
Maybe the best way to get into position for a premium quarterback in the 2027 draft is to trade DE Myles Garrett … and start QB Deshaun Watson behind an offensive line that only retained one (spot) starter from 2026. Genius.
Listed below is a summary table of where teams in the AFC North are ranked this week.
Bengals Browns Ravens Steelers
CBS Sports 8 31 9 20
ESPN 16 31 8 21
NFL.com 7 30 6 21
Sporting News 12 32 4 18
Yahoo Sports 6 30 15 20
Bleacher Report 15 30 11 19
USA Today 8 30 12 21
Average 10.3 30.6 9.3 20.0
What do you think of the Browns’ ranking this week?