2019 Cleveland Browns season

The 2019 season was the Cleveland Browns' 67th in the National Football League (NFL), their 71st overall, their second full season under general manager John Dorsey and their only season under head coach Freddie Kitchens. They finished 6–10 despite entering the season with high expectations, failing to improve on their 7–8–1 record from 2018 or end their franchise-record and league-high 16-year playoff drought. They also suffered a 12th consecutive losing season, also a franchise record and the longest such streak in the league. Following the season, the Browns fired Kitchens after one season and Dorsey left his position as well.

2019 Cleveland Browns season
Owner	Jimmy Haslam Dee Haslam
General manager	John Dorsey
Head coach	Freddie Kitchens
Home stadium	FirstEnergy Stadium
Results
Record	6–10
Division place	3rd AFC North
Playoffs	Did not qualify
All-Pros	G Joel Bitonio (2nd team)
Pro Bowlers	G Joel Bitonio RB Nick Chubb WR Jarvis Landry
← 2018 Browns seasons 2020 →

Offseason

Coaching changes

On October 29, 2018, after Week 8 of the 2018 season, the Browns fired head coach Hue Jackson. Jackson posted a record of 3–36–1 (.088) record during his 21⁄2-season tenure with the Browns. Jackson failed to win any away games during his tenure and lost every game in 2017. Offensive coordinator Todd Haley was also fired the same day.^[1] Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams finished out the 2018 season with a 5–3 (.625) record as interim head coach.

On January 12, 2019, the Browns promoted interim offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens to head coach.^[2]

On January 12, the Browns hired former Minnesota Vikings special teams coordinator Mike Priefer to the same role.^[3]

On January 14, the Browns hired former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Todd Monken as offensive coordinator and former Arizona Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks as defensive coordinator.^[4]

Roster changes

Re-signings

Position	Player	Tag	Date
LB	Ray-Ray Armstrong	UFA	March 13[5]
CB	Juston Burris	UFA	April 1
DT	Trevon Coley	ERFA	April 1
CB	Phillip Gaines	UFA	March 19[6]
WR	Rashard Higgins	RFA	April 1
OT	Greg Robinson	UFA	February 25[7]
FS	Jermaine Whitehead	ERFA	April 1

Players added

Position	Player	Tag	2018 team	Date
WR	Odell Beckham Jr.	Trade[trade 1]	New York Giants	March 13[8]
QB	Garrett Gilbert	UFA	Carolina Panthers	April 5[9]
TE	Demetrius Harris	UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	March 14[10]
RB	Kareem Hunt	UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	February 11[11]
RB	D'Ernest Johnson	UFA	Orlando Apollos (AAF)	May 16[12]
G	Eric Kush	UFA	Chicago Bears	March 14[13]
OT	Kendall Lamm	UFA	Houston Texans	March 15[14]
G	Justin McCray	Trade[trade 2]	Green Bay Packers	April 1[15]
SS	Eric Murray	Trade[trade 3]	Kansas City Chiefs	April 1[16]
DT	Sheldon Richardson	UFA	Minnesota Vikings	March 13[17]
LB	Adarius Taylor	UFA	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	March 14[18]
WR	Taywan Taylor	Trade[trade 4]	Tennessee Titans	August 31[15]
G	Wyatt Teller	Trade[trade 5]	Buffalo Bills	August 30[19]
DE	Olivier Vernon	Trade[trade 1]	New York Giants	March 13[8]

Players lost

Position	Player	Tag	2019 team	Date
LB	Ray-Ray Armstrong	Release[15]	New Orleans Saints	September 18
CB	Briean Boddy-Calhoun	UFA	Houston Texans	March 15
LB	Jamie Collins	Release[20]	New England Patriots	May 15
P	Britton Colquitt	Release[15]	Minnesota Vikings	August 31[21]
DT	Carl Davis	Release[15]	Indianapolis Colts	October 14
TE	Seth DeValve	Release[15]	Jacksonville Jaguars	August 31[22]
TE	Darren Fells	Release[23]	Houston Texans	March 19[24]
C	Kyle Friend	Release[25]
CB	E. J. Gaines	UFA	Buffalo Bills	March 25[26]
OT	Desmond Harrison	Release[27]	Arizona Cardinals	June 6[28]
RB	Duke Johnson	Trade[trade 6]	Houston Texans	August 8
K	Greg Joseph	Release[15]	Tennessee Titans	December 18[29]
FS	Derrick Kindred	Release[30]	Indianapolis Colts	April 2[31]
WR	Ricardo Louis	Release[30]	Miami Dolphins	April 8[32]
RB	Devante Mays	Release[33]	Jacksonville Jaguars	July 31
DE	Emmanuel Ogbah	Trade[trade 3]	Kansas City Chiefs	April 1[16]
SS	Jabrill Peppers	Trade[trade 1]	New York Giants	March 13[8]
WR	Breshad Perriman	UFA	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	March 13[34]
QB	Tyrod Taylor	UFA	Los Angeles Chargers	March 13[35]
LB	Tanner Vallejo	Release[36]	Arizona Cardinals	February 5[37]
G	Earl Watford	UFA	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	March 15[38]
WR	Daniel Williams	Release[7]
CB	Howard Wilson	Release[30]
G	Kevin Zeitler	Trade[trade 1]	New York Giants	March 13[8]
DE	Anthony Zettel	Release[15]	Cincinnati Bengals	October 17[39]

Trade notes

1. The Browns acquired WR Odell Beckham Jr. and LB Olivier Vernon from the New York Giants in exchange for SS Jabrill Peppers, G Kevin Zeitler, and 2019 1st-round (No. 17) and 3rd-round (No. 95) selections.
2. The Browns acquired G Justin McCray and an undisclosed 2020 draft selection from the Green Bay Packers in exchange for an undisclosed 2020 draft selection.
3. The Browns acquired S Eric Murray from the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for DE Emmanuel Ogbah
4. The Browns acquired WR Taywan Taylor from the Tennessee Titans in exchange for an undisclosed 2020 draft selection.
5. The Browns acquired G Wyatt Teller and a 2021 7th round selection from the Buffalo Bills in exchange for 2020 5th and 6th round selections.
6. The Browns acquired a 2020 3rd round selection from the Houston Texans in exchange for RB Duke Johnson. This was originally a conditional 4th round selection, but Johnson was active for at least 10 games for the Texans in 2019, which resulted in the pick becoming a 3rd round selection.

Players added and lost

During the 2019 off-season, the Browns also signed DT Brandin Bryant,^[40] WR Jaelen Strong,^[41] and G Bryan Witzmann,^[42] but released them prior to the start of the season^[15]

2019 NFL draft

Main article: 2019 NFL draft

Cleveland traded their first-round pick (17th), a third-round pick previously acquired from New England (95th), guard Kevin Zeitler and safety Jabrill Peppers to New York in exchange for wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and defensive end Olivier Vernon.

2019 Cleveland Browns draft

Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
2	46	Greedy Williams	CB	LSU
3	80	Sione Takitaki	LB	BYU
4	119	Sheldrick Redwine	S	Miami (FL)
5	155	Mack Wilson	LB	Alabama
	170	Austin Seibert	K	Oklahoma
6	189	Drew Forbes	OT	Southeast Missouri State
7	221	Donnie Lewis	CB	Tulane

Undrafted free agents

2019 Cleveland Browns UDFA

Player	Position	College	Signed	Cut
Ka'John Armstrong	OT	Eastern Michigan	June 6[43]	August 10[44]
Dorian Baker	WR	Kentucky	May 3	August 31[15]
David Blough	QB	Purdue	May 3	August 30 (trade)[45]
Stephen Carlson	TE	Princeton	May 3	August 31[15]
Lo Falemaka	C	Utah	July 22[46]	August 31 (placed on IR)[47]
Brian Fineanganofo	OT	Idaho State	May 3	August 31[15]
Jamie Gillan	P	Arkansas–Pine Bluff	May 3
Darrin Hall	RB	Pittsburgh	May 3	May 6[48]
J. T. Hassell	S	Florida Tech	May 3	August 31[15]
D. J. Montgomery	WR	Austin Peay	May 3	August 31 (placed on IR)[47]
Jarrell Owens	DE	Oklahoma State	May 3	August 31[15]
Jermaine Ponder	CB	Saint Francis	May 3	August 3[49]
Wyatt Ray	DE	Boston College	May 3	August 31[15]
Anthony Stubbs	LB	Prairie View A&M	May 3	August 31[15]
LJ Scott	RB	Michigan State	May 13[33]	May 16[12]
Trevon Tate	C	Memphis	May 3	May 28[50]
Willie Wright	C	Tulsa	May 3	August 31[15]
Dedrick Young II	LB	Nebraska	May 3	August 31[15]
A green background indicates the player made the Browns' Week 1 53-man roster

Uniform changes

On September 4, the Browns announced that they would use their brown "color rush" uniforms, which they debuted in 2018, as their primary home uniforms for 2019, wearing them for six home games. These uniforms feature dark brown jerseys with orange numbers and orange stripes, and dark brown pants with the same orange stripes.^[51]

Staff

2019 Cleveland Browns staff

Front office EVP/COO – David Jenkins Chief strategy officer – Paul DePodesta General manager – John Dorsey Assistant general manager – Eliot Wolf Vice president, player personnel – Alonzo Highsmith Vice president, player personnel – Ken Kovash Vice president, football administration – Chris Cooper Director, research & strategy – Kevin Meers Director, scouting – Mike Cetta Assistant director, scouting – Glenn Cook Director, college scouting – Steve Malin Director, pro scouting – Dan Saganey Assistant director, pro scouting – Jim Noel Special advisor – Jim Brown Head coaches Head coach – Freddie Kitchens Associate head coach/offensive line – James Campen Assistant to the head coach – Ryan Hollern Special assistant to head coach – Jody Wright Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator – Todd Monken Quarterbacks – Ryan Lindley Run game coordinator/running backs – Stump Mitchell Wide receivers – Adam Henry Tight ends – John Lilly Assistant offensive line – Jeff Blasko Offensive quality control – Jim Dray Offensive quality control – Tyler Tettleton

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Steve Wilks Defensive line – Tosh Lupoi Assistant defensive line – John Parrella Defensive Run game coordinator/linebackers – Al Holcomb Pass game coordinator/secondary – Joe Whitt Jr. Defensive backs – DeWayne Walker Senior defensive assistant – Chris Jones Defensive quality control – Alonso Escalante Defensive quality control – Deuce Schwartz Defensive assistant – Kyohei Kosaka Special teams coaches Special teams coordinator – Mike Priefer Assistant special teams – Doug Colman Strength and conditioning Director, strength and conditioning – Larry Jackson Strength and conditioning assistant – Evan Marcus Strength and conditioning assistant/sports science – Josh Christovich Strength and conditioning assistant – Monty Gibson Strength and conditioning assistant – Dale Jones

Final roster

2019 Cleveland Browns roster

Quarterbacks (QB)  3 Garrett Gilbert  6 Baker Mayfield Running backs (RB) 24 Nick Chubb 27 Kareem Hunt 30 D'Ernest Johnson Wide receivers (WR) 13 Odell Beckham Jr. 81 Rashard Higgins 12 KhaDarel Hodge 80 Jarvis Landry 18 Damion Ratley 10 Taywan Taylor Tight ends (TE) 86 Pharaoh Brown 89 Stephen Carlson 88 Demetrius Harris 85 David Njoku 83 Ricky Seals-Jones

Offensive linemen (OL) 75 Joel Bitonio G 79 Drew Forbes G 71 Colby Gossett G 74 Chris Hubbard T 72 Eric Kush G 70 Kendall Lamm T 67 Justin McCray T 78 Greg Robinson T 77 Wyatt Teller G 64 JC Tretter C Defensive linemen (DL) 91 Eli Ankou DT 94 Bryan Cox Jr. DE 97 Porter Gustin DE 52 Robert McCray DE 65 Larry Ogunjobi DT 98 Sheldon Richardson DT 92 Chad Thomas DE 54 Olivier Vernon DE 99 Justin Zimmer DT

Linebackers (LB) 55 Tae Davis OLB 53 Joe Schobert MLB 44 Sione Takitaki OLB 57 Adarius Taylor MLB 51 Mack Wilson OLB Defensive backs (DB) 31 Juston Burris S 38 T. J. Carrie CB 49 J. T. Hassell SS 39 Terrance Mitchell CB 22 Eric Murray SS 23 Damarious Randall FS 29 Sheldrick Redwine SS 20 Tavierre Thomas CB 21 Denzel Ward CB 26 Greedy Williams CB Special teams (ST)  7 Jamie Gillan P 47 Charley Hughlett LS  4 Austin Seibert K

Practice squad 90 Brandin Bryant DT 17 Shelton Gibson WR 48 Jermaine Grace OLB 37 Donnie Lewis CB 41 Montrel Meander OLB 16 J'Mon Moore WR 62 Malcolm Pridgeon G 40 Tigie Sankoh FS Int'l 84 Derrick Willies WR (IR) 66 Willie Wright C 59 Trevon Young DE Reserve 42 Morgan Burnett SS (IR) 96 Daniel Ekuale DT (IR) -- Lo Falemaka C (IR) 95 Myles Garrett DE (Susp.) 56 Willie Harvey OLB (IR) 25 Dontrell Hilliard RB (IR) 34 Robert Jackson CB (IR) 58 Christian Kirksey OLB (IR) 15 D. J. Montgomery WR (IR)  5 Drew Stanton QB (IR) Rookies in italics 53 active, 11 reserve, 10 practice squad

Preseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	August 8	Washington Redskins	W 30–10	1–0	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
2	August 17	at Indianapolis Colts	W 21–18	2–0	Lucas Oil Stadium	Recap
3	August 23	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 12–13	2–1	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
4	August 29	Detroit Lions	W 20–16	3–1	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	September 8	Tennessee Titans	L 13–43	0–1	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
2	September 16	at New York Jets	W 23–3	1–1	MetLife Stadium	Recap
3	September 22	Los Angeles Rams	L 13–20	1–2	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
4	September 29	at Baltimore Ravens	W 40–25	2–2	M&T Bank Stadium	Recap
5	October 7	at San Francisco 49ers	L 3–31	2–3	Levi's Stadium	Recap
6	October 13	Seattle Seahawks	L 28–32	2–4	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
7	Bye
8	October 27	at New England Patriots	L 13–27	2–5	Gillette Stadium	Recap
9	November 3	at Denver Broncos	L 19–24	2–6	Empower Field at Mile High	Recap
10	November 10	Buffalo Bills	W 19–16	3–6	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
11	November 14	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 21–7	4–6	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
12	November 24	Miami Dolphins	W 41–24	5–6	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
13	December 1	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 13–20	5–7	Heinz Field	Recap
14	December 8	Cincinnati Bengals	W 27–19	6–7	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
15	December 15	at Arizona Cardinals	L 24–38	6–8	State Farm Stadium	Recap
16	December 22	Baltimore Ravens	L 15–31	6–9	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
17	December 29	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 23–33	6–10	Paul Brown Stadium	Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Tennessee Titans

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Titans	3	9	10	21	43
Browns	6	0	7	0	13

Game information

First quarter CLE – Dontrell Hilliard 4-yard run (kick failed, wide right), 10:11. Browns 6–0. Drive: 8 plays, 73 yards, 4:49. TEN – Cairo Santos 37-yard field goal, 6:32. Browns 6–3. Drive: 7 plays, 73 yards, 3:39. Second quarter TEN – Derrick Henry 1-yard run (Cairo Santos kick), 9:39. Titans 10–6. Drive: 11 plays, 87 yards, 5:10. TEN – Baker Mayfield sacked in the end zone by Cameron Wake for a safety, 1:42. Titans 12–6. Third quarter TEN – Cairo Santos 53-yard field goal, 11:53. Titans 15–6. Drive: 5 plays, 44 yards, 3:07. CLE – David Njoku 3-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 2:10. Titans 15–13. Drive: 6 plays, 61 yards, 3:42. TEN – Derrick Henry 75-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (Cairo Santos kick), 1:57. Titans 22–13. Drive: 1 play, 75 yards, 0:13. Fourth quarter TEN – Delanie Walker 11-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (Cairo Santos kick), 12:32. Titans 29–13. Drive: 4 plays, 35 yards, 1:39. TEN – Delanie Walker 7-yard pass from Marcus Mariota (Cairo Santos kick), 9:03. Titans 36–13. Drive: 4 plays, 34 yards, 2:14. TEN – Malcolm Butler 38-yard interception return (Cairo Santos kick), 3:02. Titans 43–13. Top passers TEN – Marcus Mariota – 14/24, 248 yards, 3 TD CLE – Baker Mayfield – 25/38, 285 yards, TD, 3 INT Top rushers TEN – Derrick Henry – 19 rushes, 84 yards, TD CLE – Nick Chubb – 16 rushes, 75 yards Top receivers TEN – A. J. Brown – 3 receptions, 100 yards CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. – 7 receptions, 71 yards

Week One: Tennessee Titans at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: September 8
• Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
• Game weather: Partly cloudy, 71 °F (22 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Brad Allen
• TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson and Gene Steratore
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns opened the season with a home game against the Tennessee Titans with high hopes after their 7–8–1 season in 2018. The Browns scored a touchdown on their first drive to take a 6–0 lead, but the Titans controlled the game after that, taking a 12–6 lead into halftime. After a Titans field goal, a Browns' touchdown late in the third quarter made the score 15–13, but that is the closest they would get as quarterback Baker Mayfield threw three interceptions and the Titans scored four unanswered touchdowns to secure a 43–13 win.

With the loss, the Browns opened the season at 0–1. The Browns failed to win in Week 1 for the 15th consecutive season. They also committed 18 penalties for 182 yards, their most penalties in a game since 1951.^[52]

Week 2: at New York Jets

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	6	10	7	0	23
Jets	0	3	0	0	3

Game information

First quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 23-yard field goal, 10:27. Browns 3–0. Drive: 11 plays, 76 yards, 4:33. CLE – Austin Seibert 48-yard field goal, 6:15. Browns 6–0. Drive: 6 plays, 22 yards, 2:32. Second quarter CLE – Nick Chubb 19-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 10:16. Browns 13–0. Drive: 5 plays, 53 yards, 3:07. NYJ – Sam Ficken 46-yard field goal, 2:56. Browns 13–3. Drive: 11 plays, 47 yards, 7:20. CLE – Austin Seibert 43-yard field goal, 0:00. Browns 16–3. Drive: 5 plays, 15 yards, 0:35. Third quarter CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. 89-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 3:32. Browns 23–3. Drive: 1 play, 89 yards, 0:11. Fourth quarter No scoring plays. Top passers CLE – Baker Mayfield – 19/35, 325 yards, TD, INT NYJ – Luke Falk – 20/25, 198 yards Top rushers CLE – Nick Chubb – 18 rushes, 62 yards, TD NYJ – Le'Veon Bell – 21 rushes, 68 yards Top receivers CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. – 6 receptions, 161 yards, TD NYJ – Robby Anderson – 4 receptions, 81 yards

Week Two: Cleveland Browns at New York Jets – Game summary

at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

• Date: September 16
• Game time: 8:15 pm. EDT
• Game weather: Cloudy, 72 °F (22 °C)
• Game attendance: 78,523
• Referee: Alex Kemp
• TV announcers (ESPN): Joe Tessitore, Booger McFarland, Lisa Salters and John Parry
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns traveled to New York for a Monday Night Football matchup against the Jets, marking the Browns' first MNF appearance since 2015. The Browns opened the scoring with a pair of Austin Seibert field goals—the first of his career—in the first quarter to take a 6–0 lead. After the Browns added a Nick Chubb touchdown run, the teams traded field goals late in the second quarter to give the Browns a 16–3 halftime lead. The only score of the second half was an 89-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield to Odell Beckham Jr. to give the Browns a 23–3 win. The Browns' defense had a solid performance with four sacks (including three by Myles Garrett), one takeaway and two fourth-down stops.^[53]

With the win, the Browns improved to 1–1. Punter Jamie Gillan was named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week; he made six punts, five of which landed inside the Jets' 20-yard line, averaging 38.5 yards per kick.^[54]

Week 3: vs. Los Angeles Rams

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	3	0	7	10	20
Browns	0	6	7	0	13

Game information

First quarter LAR – Greg Zuerlein 53-yard field goal, 4:06. Rams 3–0. Drive: 11 plays, 51 yards, 4:58. Second quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 23-yard field goal, 11:41. Tied 3–3. Drive: 13 plays, 70 yards, 7:25. CLE – Austin Seibert 35-yard field goal, 0:00. Browns 6–3. Drive: 4 plays, 0 yards, 0:18. Third quarter LAR – Cooper Kupp 11-yard pass from Jared Goff (Greg Zuerlein kick), 10:40. Rams 10–6. Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 4:20. CLE – Demetrius Harris 2-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 4:37. Browns 13–10. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 6:03. Fourth quarter LAR – Cooper Kupp 6-yard pass from Jared Goff (Greg Zuerlein kick), 12:48. Rams 17–13. Drive: 8 plays, 72 yards, 4:12. LAR – Greg Zuerlein 37-yard field goal, 6:37. Rams 20–13. Drive: 9 plays, 43 yards, 2:37. Top passers LAR – Jared Goff – 24/38, 269 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT CLE – Baker Mayfield – 18/36, 195 yards, TD, INT Top rushers LAR – Todd Gurley – 14 rushes, 43 yards CLE – Nick Chubb – 23 rushes, 96 yards Top receivers LAR – Brandin Cooks – 8 receptions, 112 yards CLE – Jarvis Landry – 3 receptions, 62 yards

Week Three: Los Angeles Rams at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: September 22
• Game time: 8:20 pm. EDT
• Game weather: Mostly clear, 83 °F (28 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,895
• Referee: Shawn Smith
• TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya and Terry McAulay
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns hosted the Los Angeles Rams in their first Sunday Night Football appearance since 2008. The Browns held a 6–3 halftime lead after a highly defensive first half. The only scoring came via field goals from the Browns' Austin Seibert and the Rams' Greg Zuerlein. In the third quarter, the Rams drove down the field and scored a touchdown on a Jared Goff pass to Cooper Kupp to take a 10–6 lead. The Browns responded on their next drive with a Baker Mayfield pass to Demetrius Harris to retake the lead at 13–10. Early in the fourth quarter, the Rams regained the lead, 17–13, on another Goff touchdown pass to Kupp and extended their lead to 20–13 with a Zuerlein field goal. Late in the game, the Browns had a chance to tie the score with a touchdown. In the final minute, the Browns had the ball first and goal from the Rams' 4-yard line, but Mayfield threw three incomplete passes, followed by an interception on fourth down.

With the loss, the Browns fell to 1–2.

Week 4: at Baltimore Ravens

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	7	3	14	16	40
Ravens	0	7	3	15	25

Game information

First quarter CLE – Ricky Seals-Jones 9-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 2:50. Browns 7–0. Drive: 13 plays, 84 yards, 8:31. Second quarter BAL – Miles Boykin 9-yard pass from Lamar Jackson (Justin Tucker kick), 1:55. Tied 7–7. Drive: 7 plays, 58 yards, 3:40. CLE – Austin Seibert 24-yard field goal, 0:08. Browns 10–7. Drive: 10 plays, 81 yards, 1:47. Third quarter BAL – Justin Tucker 41-yard field goal, 11:15. Tied 10–10. Drive: 8 plays, 62 yards, 3:45. CLE – Nick Chubb 14-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 9:41. Browns 17–10. Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 1:34. CLE – Nick Chubb 2-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 0:53. Browns 24–10. Drive: 8 plays, 74 yards, 5:18. Fourth quarter BAL – Mark Andrews 8-yard pass from Lamar Jackson (Mark Ingram II run), 9:51. Browns 24–18. Drive: 14 plays, 75 yards, 6:02. CLE – Nick Chubb 88-yard run (pass failed), 9:35. Browns 30–18. Drive: 1 play, 83 yards, 0:16. CLE – Austin Seibert 43-yard field goal, 6:56. Browns 33–18. Drive: 4 plays, 6 yards, 1:19. CLE – Dontrell Hilliard 1-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 2:14. Browns 40–18. Drive: 6 plays, 39 yards, 3:07. BAL – Willie Snead IV 50-yard pass from Lamar Jackson (Justin Tucker kick), 0:30. Browns 40-25. Drive: 5 plays, 79 yards, 1:44. Top passers CLE – Baker Mayfield – 20/30, 342 yards, TD, INT BAL – Lamar Jackson – 24/34, 247 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT Top rushers CLE – Nick Chubb – 20 rushes, 165 yards, 3 TD BAL – Mark Ingram II – 12 rushes, 71 yards Top receivers CLE – Jarvis Landry – 8 receptions, 167 yards BAL – Willie Snead IV – 2 receptions, 61 yards, TD

Week Four: Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens – Game summary

at M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland

• Date: September 29
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EDT
• Game weather: Partly cloudy, 83 °F (28 °C)
• Game attendance: 70,686
• Referee: Shawn Hochuli
• TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Trent Green and Melanie Collins
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns opened the scoring in the first quarter with a Baker Mayfield touchdown pass to Ricky Seals-Jones. However, the Ravens responded with a Lamar Jackson touchdown pass to Miles Boykin to tie the game at 7–7. An Austin Seibert field goal gave the Browns a 10–7 lead at halftime. In the second half, Nick Chubb led the Browns, scoring a career-high three touchdowns and rushing for 128 of his 165 yards on the day, including an 88-yard touchdown run to extend the Browns' lead just two plays after the Ravens had cut the score to 24–18. A Dontrell Hilliard touchdown run extended the Browns' lead to 40–18. The Ravens added a garbage-time touchdown to make the final score 40–25.

With the win, the Browns improved to 2–2 and moved into first place in the AFC North for the first time since Week 10 of 2014. For his 165 yards and three touchdowns, Chubb was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week^[55] and FedEx Ground Player of the Week^[56]

On October 3, punter Jamie Gillan was named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for September. Gillan had 11 punts inside the 20-yard line and helped the Browns limit opponents to just 19 punt return yards for the month.^[57]

Week 5: at San Francisco 49ers

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	0	3	0	0	3
49ers	14	7	7	3	31

Game information

First quarter SF – Matt Breida 83-yard run (Robbie Gould kick), 13:17. 49ers 7–0. Drive: 1 play, 83 yards, 0:11. SF – Matt Breida 5-yard pass from Jimmy Garoppolo (Robbie Gould kick), 6:26. 49ers 14–0. Drive: 8 plays, 74 yards, 3:57. Second quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 30-yard field goal, 11:22. 49ers 14–3. Drive: 10 plays, 51 yards, 4:47. SF – Tevin Coleman 19-yard run (Robbie Gould kick), 1:54. 49ers 21–3. Drive: 6 plays, 49 yards, 2:51. Third quarter SF – George Kittle 22-yard pass from Jimmy Garoppolo (Robbie Gould kick), 10:37. 49ers 28–3. Drive: 9 plays, 90 yards, 4:23. Fourth quarter SF – Robbie Gould 44-yard field goal, 5:08. 49ers 31–3. Drive: 4 plays, 3 yards, 1:54. Top passers CLE – Baker Mayfield – 8/22, 100 yards, 2 INT SF – Jimmy Garoppolo – 20/29, 181 yards, 2 TD Top rushers CLE – Nick Chubb – 16 rushes, 87 yards SF – Matt Breida – 11 rushes, 114 yards, TD Top receivers CLE – Jarvis Landry – 4 receptions, 75 yards SF – George Kittle – 6 receptions, 70 yards, TD

Week Five: Cleveland Browns at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary

at Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, California

• Date: October 7
• Game time: 8:15 pm. EDT/5:15 p.m. PDT
• Game weather: Clear, 87 °F (31 °C)
• Game attendance: 70,585
• Referee: Jerome Boger
• TV announcers (ESPN): Joe Tessitore, Booger McFarland, Lisa Salters and John Parry
• Recap, Game Book

The 49ers opened the scoring with a pair of Matt Breida touchdowns in the first quarter – an 83-yard run and a 5-yard reception from Jimmy Garoppolo. After a Browns field goal, the 49ers continued their dominance, scoring an additional 17 points en route to a 31–3 blowout win. The 49ers defense held Baker Mayfield to just 100 passing yards and no touchdowns, marking Mayfield's first career start in which he did not throw a touchdown pass, having done so in each of his first 17 starts. The Browns also turned the ball over four times, including two Mayfield interceptions.

With the loss, the Browns fell to 2–3.

Week 6: vs. Seattle Seahawks

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	6	12	7	7	32
Browns	14	6	0	8	28

Game information

First quarter CLE – Nick Chubb 7-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 13:01. Browns 7–0. Drive: 3 plays, 23 yards, 1:59. SEA – Russell Wilson 16-yard run (kick failed, wide right), 8:52. Browns 7–6. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 4:09. CLE – Baker Mayfield 10-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 4:43. Browns 14–6. Drive: 10 plays, 69 yards, 4:09. Second quarter CLE – Ricky Seals-Jones 31-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (kick failed, wide left), 14:54. Browns 20–6. Drive: 3 plays, 92 yards, 1:25. SEA – Jason Myers 38-yard field goal, 10:46. Browns 20–9. Drive: 9 plays, 55 yards, 4:08. SEA – Jason Myers 20-yard field goal, 7:25. Browns 20–12. Drive: 6 plays, 18 yards, 2:41. SEA – Jaron Brown 17-yard pass from Russell Wilson (run failed), 0:22. Browns 20–18. Drive: 8 plays, 88 yards, 1:07. Third quarter SEA – Jaron Brown 6-yard pass from Russell Wilson (Jason Myers kick), 6:00. Seahawks 25–20. Drive: 7 plays, 58 yards, 2:54. Fourth quarter CLE – Nick Chubb 3-yard run (Baker Mayfield–Demetrius Harris pass), 9:02. Browns 28–25. Drive: 2 plays, 24 yards, 0:46. SEA – Chris Carson 1-yard run (Jason Myers kick), 3:30. Seahawks 32–28. Drive: 9 plays, 79 yards, 5:32. Top passers SEA – Russell Wilson – 23/33, 295 yards, 2 TD CLE – Baker Mayfield – 22/37, 249 yards, TD, 3 INT Top rushers SEA – Chris Carson – 24 rushes, 124 yards, TD CLE – Nick Chubb – 20 rushes, 122 yards, 2 TD Top receivers SEA – Tyler Lockett – 5 receptions, 75 yards CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. – 6 receptions, 101 yards

Week Six: Seattle Seahawks at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: October 13
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EDT
• Game weather: Sunny, 58 °F (14 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Adrian Hill
• TV announcers (Fox): Chris Myers, Daryl Johnston and Laura Okmin
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns returned home to take on the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6 and opened the scoring with a Nick Chubb touchdown run. Seattle responded with a touchdown run by Russell Wilson, giving the Browns a 7–6 lead after a missed extra point by Seattle. The Browns then extended their lead to 20–6, with Baker Mayfield running in from 10 yards before throwing a 31-yard touchdown pass to Ricky Seals-Jones. Before halftime, Seattle scored on a pair of Jason Myers field goals and a touchdown pass from Wilson to Jaron Brown to cut the Browns' lead to 20–18. In the second half, Seattle took the lead on another Wilson touchdown pass to Brown, but the Browns responded with a Chubb touchdown run and a two-point pass from Mayfield to Demetrius Harris to retake the lead, 28–25. The Seahawks retook the lead with 3:30 left in the game, going up 32–28 thanks to a Chris Carson touchdown run, before picking off Mayfield on the Browns' ensuing drive to allow them to run down the clock and claim the win.

With the loss, the Browns went into their bye week at 2–4.

Week 8: at New England Patriots

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	0	7	3	3	13
Patriots	17	0	7	3	27

Game information

First quarter NE – Mike Nugent 20-yard field goal, 6:35. Patriots 3–0. Drive: 12 plays, 71 yards, 5:53. NE – Dont'a Hightower 26-yard fumble return (Mike Nugent kick), 5:45. Patriots 10–0. NE – Julian Edelman 8-yard pass from Tom Brady (Mike Nugent kick), 1:47. Patriots 17–0. Drive: 2 plays, 11 yards, 0:44. Second quarter CLE – Demetrius Harris 21-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 7:44. Patriots 17–7. Drive: 6 plays, 54 yards, 3:28. Third quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 38-yard field goal, 8:37. Patriots 17–10. Drive: 12 plays, 55 yards, 6:23. NE – Julian Edelman 14-yard pass from Tom Brady (Mike Nugent kick), 6:11. Patriots 24–10. Drive: 7 plays, 84 yards, 2:26. Fourth quarter NE – Mike Nugent 29-yard field goal, 7:43. Patriots 27–10. Drive: 11 plays, 62 yards, 5:27. CLE – Austin Seibert 47-yard field goal, 2:33. Patriots 27–13. Drive: 7 plays, 47 yards, 1:34. Top passers CLE – Baker Mayfield – 20/31, 194 yards, TD, INT NE – Tom Brady – 20/36, 259 yards, 2 TD Top rushers CLE – Nick Chubb – 20 rushes, 131 yards NE – Sony Michel – 21 rushes, 74 yards Top receivers CLE – Jarvis Landry – 5 receptions, 65 yards NE – Julian Edelman – 8 receptions, 78 yards, 2 TD

Week Eight: Cleveland Browns at New England Patriots – Game summary

at Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

• Date: October 27
• Game time: 4:25 pm. EDT
• Game weather: Rain, 49 °F (9 °C)
• Game attendance: 65,878
• Referee: Tony Corrente
• TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson and Gene Steratore
• Recap, Game Book

After their bye week, the Browns traveled to New England for a Week 8 contest against the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, who entered this game 7–0. The Patriots raced to a 17–0 first quarter lead, aided by two Nick Chubb fumbles and a Baker Mayfield interception on three consecutive offensive snaps for the Browns. Chubb's first fumble was returned by Dont'a Hightower for a 26–yard touchdown, while the Patriots' second touchdown came on a Tom Brady pass to Julian Edelman. Browns got on the board in the second quarter with a Mayfield touchdown pass to Demetrius Harris, to make the score 17–7 at halftime. In the third quarter, the Browns closed New England's lead to 17–10 with an Austin Seibert 38-yard field goal, but the Patriots responded with another Brady touchdown pass to Edelman on their next drive to extend their lead to 24–10. The teams traded field goals in the fourth quarter for a 27–13 Patriots win.

With the loss, the Browns fell to 2–5.

Week 9: at Denver Broncos

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	0	12	0	7	19
Broncos	7	10	7	0	24

Game information

First quarter DEN – Courtland Sutton 21-yard pass from Brandon Allen (Brandon McManus kick), 6:09. Broncos 7–0. Drive: 9 plays, 63 yards, 4:47. Second quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 39-yard field goal, 12:48. Broncos 7–3. Drive: 5 plays, 19 yards, 2:20. DEN – Noah Fant 75-yard pass from Brandon Allen (Brandon McManus kick), 12:34. Broncos 14–3. Drive: 1 play, 75 yards, 0:14. CLE – Austin Seibert 30-yard field goal, 7:14. Broncos 14–6. Drive: 9 plays, 64 yards, 5:20. CLE – Austin Seibert 27-yard field goal, 3:49. Broncos 14–9. Drive: 6 plays, 9 yards, 2:22. DEN – Brandon McManus 43-yard field goal, 1:47. Broncos 17–9. Drive: 5 plays, 43 yards, 2:02. CLE – Austin Seibert 30-yard field goal, 0:15. Broncos 17–12. Drive: 13 plays, 63 yards, 1:32. Third quarter DEN – Phillip Lindsay 30-yard run (Brandon McManus kick), 1:06. Broncos 24–12. Drive: 7 plays, 95 yards, 4:10. Fourth quarter CLE – Jarvis Landry 9-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 10:47. Broncos 24–19. Drive: 9 plays, 76 yards, 5:19. Top passers CLE – Baker Mayfield – 27/42, 273 yards, TD DEN – Brandon Allen – 12/20, 193 yards, 2 TD Top rushers CLE – Nick Chubb – 20 rushes, 65 yards DEN – Phillip Lindsay – 9 rushes, 92 yards, TD Top receivers CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. – 5 receptions, 87 yards DEN – Noah Fant – 3 receptions, 115 yards, TD

Week Nine: Cleveland Browns at Denver Broncos – Game summary

at Empower Field at Mile High, Denver, Colorado

• Date: November 3
• Game time: 4:25 pm. EST/2:25 p.m. MST
• Game weather: Mostly Cloudy, 55 °F (13 °C)
• Game attendance: 76,743
• Referee: Bill Vinovich
• TV announcers (CBS): Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon and Jay Feely
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns visited the Denver Broncos for a Week 9 match-up. The Browns hoped to end a three-game losing streak while Denver quarterback Brandon Allen was making his first career start in place of an injured Joe Flacco. Denver opened the scoring with an Allen 21–yard touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton. He added a 75–yard touchdown pass to Noah Fant in the second quarter. For the Browns, Austin Seibert kicked four field goals in the second quarter (three of which occurred with the Browns inside Denver's 15-yard line) and Denver's Brandon McManus added a field goal to give the Broncos a 17–12 halftime lead. In the second half, the Broncos extended their lead to 24–12 on a Phillip Lindsay touchdown run, while the Browns closed the Broncos' lead back to five points on a Baker Mayfield touchdown pass to Jarvis Landry. However, the Browns could not score again, resulting in a 24–19 Broncos' win.

With the loss, the Browns fell to 2–6. This marks the 12th straight season in which the Browns suffered a losing streak of at least four games. Following the game, safety Jermaine Whitehead, out of frustration, made inappropriate and threatening tweets in response to critics. He was subsequently released by the Browns.^[58]

Week 10: vs. Buffalo Bills

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	0	7	2	7	16
Browns	6	3	3	7	19

Game information

First quarter CLE – Jarvis Landry 17-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (kick failed, wide right), 12:09. Browns 6–0. Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 2:51. Second quarter BUF – Josh Allen 10-yard run (Stephen Hauschka kick), 10:09. Bills 7–6. Drive: 9 plays, 76 yards, 4:40. CLE – Austin Seibert 27-yard field goal, 3:35. Browns 9–7. Drive: 13 plays, 69 yards, 6:34. Third quarter BUF – Baker Mayfield sacked in end zone by Tremaine Edmunds for a safety, 10:53. Tied 9–9. CLE – Austin Seibert 47-yard field goal, 3:49. Browns 12–9. Drive: 10 plays, 56 yards, 5:01. Fourth quarter BUF – Josh Allen 1-yard run (Stephen Hauschka kick), 5:26. Bills 16–12. Drive: 7 plays, 48 yards, 3:44. CLE – Rashard Higgins 7-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 1:44. Browns 19–16. Drive: 10 plays, 82 yards, 3:42. Top passers BUF – Josh Allen – 22/41, 266 yards CLE – Baker Mayfield – 26/38, 238 yards, 2 TD Top rushers BUF – Devin Singletary – 8 rushes, 42 yards CLE – Nick Chubb – 20 rushes, 116 yards Top receivers BUF – John Brown – 5 receptions, 77 yards CLE – Jarvis Landry – 9 receptions, 97 yards, TD

Week Ten: Buffalo Bills at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: November 10
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EST
• Game weather: Sunny, 50 °F (10 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Ronald Torbert
• TV announcers (CBS): Andrew Catalon, James Lofton and Amanda Balionis
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns returned home to take on the Buffalo Bills, hoping to end their 4-game losing streak. The Browns scored a touchdown on the game's first drive on a Baker Mayfield 17-yard touchdown pass to Jarvis Landry. However, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Landry resulted in the PAT attempt being kicked from 15 yards further back, and it was subsequently missed. Early in the second quarter, the Bills scored a touchdown on a Josh Allen 10-yard run to take a 7–6 lead. Browns kicker Austin Seibert nailed a 23-yard field goal, while Bills' kicker Stephen Hauschka missed a 35-yard field goal attempt late in the quarter, giving the Browns a 9–7 halftime lead. The Bills tied the game with a safety in the third quarter as Tremaine Edmunds sacked Mayfield in the end zone. Seibert added a field goal to give the Browns a 12–9 lead after three-quarters. In the fourth quarter, Allen gave the Bills a 16–12 lead on a 1-yard touchdown run. However, the Browns responded with an 82-yard drive culminating with a Mayfield touchdown pass to Rashard Higgins, giving the Browns a 19–16 lead with just under two minutes remaining. The Bills drove down the field, but Hauschka missed a 53-yard potential game-tying field goal with 22 seconds remaining, giving the Browns a 19–16 win.^[59]

With the win, the Browns improved to 3–6.

Week 11: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	0	7	0	7
Browns	7	7	0	7	21

Game information

First quarter CLE – Baker Mayfield 1-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 11:07. Browns 7–0. Drive: 5 plays, 65 yards, 2:12. Second quarter CLE – Jarvis Landry 1-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 9:55. Browns 14–0. Drive: 7 plays, 77 yards, 4:03. Third quarter PIT – Jaylen Samuels 3-yard pass from Mason Rudolph (Chris Boswell kick), 5:39. Browns 14–7. Drive: 5 plays, 87 yards, 2:32. Fourth quarter CLE – Stephen Carlson 8-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 5:25. Browns 21–7. Drive: 3 plays, 4 yards, 0:57. Top passers PIT – Mason Rudolph – 23/44, 221 yards, TD, 4 INT CLE – Baker Mayfield – 17/32, 193 yards, 2 TD Top rushers PIT – Jaylen Samuels – 5 rushes, 26 yards CLE – Nick Chubb – 27 carries, 92 yards Top receivers PIT – James Washington – 3 receptions, 49 yards CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. – 4 receptions, 60 yards

Week Eleven: Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: November 14
• Game time: 8:20 pm. EST
• Game weather: Cold, 36 °F (2 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Clete Blakeman
• TV announcers (Fox/NFLN/Amazon Prime): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews and Kristina Pink
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns stayed home to face the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield scored the first points on a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, set up by a 43-yard pass from Mayfield to wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. The next score came in the second quarter, with a 1-yard touchdown catch by Jarvis Landry. The Steelers struck back in the third quarter with a touchdown completion by Steelers running back Jaylen Samuels, but Cleveland held off the Steelers for the win. Browns rookie tight end Stephen Carlson caught a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter for his first career touchdown. The Browns defense forced four interceptions of Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph in the game.

A skirmish broke out between the two teams in the closing seconds of the game. After passing to Trey Edmunds, Rudolph found himself dragged down by Browns defensive end Myles Garrett. Upset by the late tackle, Rudolph started to attack Garrett by kicking him in the groin and attempting to pull off Garrett's helmet. Garrett then pulled off Rudolph's helmet and used it to hit Rudolph in the head. Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey and Browns defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi then joined in on the fight in defense of their respective teammates. Garrett, Ogunjobi, and Pouncey were ejected from the game. Following the game, Garrett was suspended for the remainder of 2019 and required to apply for reinstatement in 2020, while Pouncey and Ogunjobi received suspensions of two games and one game, respectively.^[60][61] Garrett's suspension was the first indefinite suspension in NFL history for a single on-field transgression.^[62]

Landry recorded his 529th reception, breaking DeAndre Hopkins' record of most catches in an NFL player's first six seasons.^[63]

With the win, the Browns improved to 4–6. The win ended an 8-game winless streak to the Steelers that dated back to 2014. This also marked the first time in franchise history that the Browns defeated division rivals Baltimore and Pittsburgh in the same season.

Week 12: vs. Miami Dolphins

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Dolphins	0	3	14	7	24
Browns	14	14	0	13	41

Game information

First quarter CLE – Jarvis Landry 7-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 9:59. Browns 7–0. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 5:01. CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. 35-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 1:51. Browns 14–0. Drive: 5 plays, 60 yards, 2:54. Second quarter CLE – Jarvis Landry 5-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 10:31. Browns 21–0. Drive: 6 plays, 44 yards, 3:39. CLE – Kareem Hunt 6-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 1:01. Browns 28–0. Drive: 9 plays, 73 yards, 4:45. MIA – Jason Sanders 36-yard field goal, 0:00. Browns 28–3. Drive: 9 plays, 63 yards, 1:01. Third quarter MIA – Mike Gesicki 11-yard pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick (Jason Sanders kick), 9:37. Browns 28–10 . Drive: 7 plays, 46 yards, 2:57. MIA – Ryan Fitzpatrick 8-yard run (Jason Sanders kick), 0:04. Browns 28–17. Drive: 11 plays, 64 yards, 4:00. Fourth quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 40-yard field goal, 11:21. Browns 31–17. Drive: 10 plays, 64 yards, 3:43. CLE – Austin Seibert 26-yard field goal, 6:51. Browns 34–17. Drive: 8 plays, 67 yards, 2:57. CLE – Nick Chubb 5-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 3:36. Browns 41–17. Drive: 4 plays, 38 yards, 2:22. MIA – Allen Hurns 7-yard pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick (Jason Sanders kick), 0:39. Browns 41–24. Drive: 7 plays, 78 yards, 2:47. Top passers MIA – Ryan Fitzpatrick – 21/39, 214 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT CLE – Baker Mayfield – 24/34, 327 yards, 3 TD, INT Top rushers MIA – Ryan Fitzpatrick – 5 rushes, 45 yards, TD CLE – Nick Chubb – 21 rushes, 106 yards, TD Top receivers MIA – Devante Parker – 6 receptions, 91 yards CLE – Jarvis Landry – 10 receptions, 148 yards, 2 TD

Week Twelve: Miami Dolphins at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: November 24
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EST
• Game weather: Partly Cloudy, 39 °F (4 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Brad Rogers
• TV announcers (Fox): Chris Myers, Daryl Johnston and Laura Okmin
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns hosted the Miami Dolphins in their third straight home game. The Browns dominated the first half, building a 28–0 lead in the process. The Browns scored four first half touchdowns on three Baker Mayfield touchdown passes (two short passes to Jarvis Landry and a 35-yard pass to Odell Beckham Jr.) and a 6-yard run by Kareem Hunt. The Dolphins got on the board with a Jason Sanders field goal to make the score 28–3 at halftime. The Dolphins came back in the third quarter. Aided by a Mayfield interception and a missed field goal by Austin Seibert, the Dolphins scored two touchdowns on a Ryan Fitzpatrick 11-yard pass to Mike Gesicki and a Fitzpatrick 8-yard run, to close the Browns' lead to 28–17. However, the Browns responded in the fourth quarter with a pair of Seibert field goals and a Nick Chubb 5-yard touchdown run to go up 41–17. A late Miami touchdown made the final score 41–24.

With the win, the Browns improved to 5–6. This marked the Browns' 100th win since returning to the NFL in 1999.^[64] Linebacker Joe Schobert was named the AFC Defensive Player of the week after recording five tackles, four blocked passes, and two interceptions.^[65]

Week 13: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	3	7	0	3	13
Steelers	0	10	7	3	20

Game information

First quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 31-yard field goal, 7:31. Browns 3–0. Drive: 13 plays, 62 yards, 7:29. Second quarter CLE – Kareem Hunt 15-yard pass from Baker Mayfield. (Austin Seibert kick), 7:40. Browns 10–0. Drive: 10 plays, 70 yards, 5:42. PIT – Chris Boswell 39-yard field goal, 2:56. Browns 10–3. Drive: 10 plays, 62 yards, 4:44. PIT – James Washington 30-yard pass from Devlin Hodges (Chris Boswell kick), 1:00. Tied 10–10. Drive: 5 plays, 69 yards, 0:48. Third quarter PIT – Benny Snell 1-yard run (Chris Boswell kick), 10:36. Steelers 17–10. Drive: 7 plays, 69 yards, 4:24. Fourth quarter PIT – Chris Boswell 29-yard field goal, 13:48. Steelers 20–10. Drive: 10 plays, 35 yards, 6:01. CLE – Austin Seibert 34-yard field goal, 7:30. Steelers 20–13. Drive: 7 plays, 61 yards, 2:48. Top passers CLE – Baker Mayfield – 18/32, 196 yards, TD, INT PIT – Devlin Hodges – 14/21, 212 yards, TD, INT Top rushers CLE – Nick Chubb – 16 rushes, 58 yards PIT – Benny Snell – 16 rushes, 63 yards, TD Top receivers CLE – Jarvis Landry – 6 receptions, 76 yards PIT – James Washington – 4 receptions, 111 yards, TD

Week Thirteen: Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers – Game summary

at Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Date: December 1
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EST
• Game weather: Mostly Cloudy, 46 °F (8 °C)
• Game attendance: 62,157
• Referee: Clay Martin
• TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle, Dan Fouts and Evan Washburn
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns traveled to Pittsburgh for round two of their division rivalry with the Steelers. In the first quarter, the Browns scored first on an Austin Seibert 31-yard field goal. They extended their lead to 10–0 in the second quarter on a Baker Mayfield 15-yard touchdown pass to Kareem Hunt. The Steelers, however tied the game 10–10 before halftime with a Chris Boswell 39-yard field goal followed by a Devlin Hodges 30-yard touchdown pass to James Washington. In the third quarter, the Steelers took a 17–10 lead when Benny Snell ran for a 1-yard touchdown and added a Boswell 29-yard field goal to make it 20–10. Seibert got the Browns within a touchdown at 20–13 on a 34-yard field goal to make it 20–13. Getting the ball back later on in the quarter, the Browns had an opportunity to score a game-tying touchdown, However, Steelers cornerback and former Brown Joe Haden came up with the game-sealing interception of Mayfield.

With the loss, the Browns fell to 5–7. This marked the Browns' 16th consecutive loss in Pittsburgh. On the same day, the Baltimore Ravens won their game, thus mathematically eliminating the Browns from AFC North title contention. This is the Browns 27th consecutive season without a division title, the longest active streak in the NFL.

Week 14: vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bengals	6	7	3	3	19
Browns	7	7	10	3	27

Game information

First quarter CIN – Randy Bullock 34-yard field goal, 10:56. Bengals 3-0. Drive: 8 plays, 59 yards, 4:04. CLE – Denzel Ward 61-yard interception return (Austin Seibert kick), 5:36. Browns 7-3. CIN – Randy Bullock 44-yard field goal, 1:37. Browns 7-6. Drive: 7 plays, 50 yards, 3:59. Second quarter CIN – Joe Mixon 1-yard run (Randy Bullock kick), 12:07. Bengals 13-7. Drive: 6 plays, 57 yards, 3:21. CLE – Baker Mayfield 7-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 6:37. Browns 14-13. Drive: 10 plays, 75 yards, 5:30. Third quarter CLE – Kareem Hunt 3-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 12:10. Browns 21-13. Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 2:50. CIN – Randy Bullock 28-yard field goal, 4:39. Browns 21-16. Drive: 16 plays, 76 yards, 7:31. CLE – Austin Seibert 53-yard field goal, 0:16. Browns 24-16. Drive: 8 plays, 40 yards, 4:23. Fourth quarter CLE – Austin Seibert 31-yard field goal, 1:06. Browns 27-16. Drive: 14 plays, 85 yards, 6:08. Top passers CIN – Andy Dalton – 22/38, 262 yards, INT CLE – Baker Mayfield – 11/24, 192 yards, 2 INT Top rushers CIN – Joe Mixon – 23 rushes, 146 yards, TD CLE – Nick Chubb – 15 rushes, 106 yards Top receivers CIN – Tyler Boyd – 5 receptions, 75 yards CLE – Jarvis Landry – 4 receptions, 76 yards

Week Fourteen: Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: December 8
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EST
• Game weather: Sunny, 48 °F (9 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Carl Cheffers
• TV announcers (CBS): Beth Mowins and Tiki Barber
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns returned home to battle their in-state rival Cincinnati Bengals. Cincinnati took an early 3–0 lead on a Randy Bullock 34-yard field goal. The Browns got on the board later in the first quarter as Denzel Ward intercepted an Andy Dalton pass and returned it 61 yards for a touchdown to take a 7–3 lead. Bullock added a 44-yard field goal to bring the Bengals to within 7–6 after the first quarter. Both teams scored a touchdown in the second quarter: the Bengals' coming on a Joe Mixon 1-yard run and the Browns' on a Baker Mayfield 7-yard run to give the Browns a 14–13 halftime lead. On the Browns' opening drive of the third quarter, they scored a touchdown on a Kareem Hunt 3-yard run to extend their lead to 21–13. The teams traded field goals to finish off the third quarter and also did so in the fourth quarter, to give the Browns a 27–19 win.

With the win, the Browns improved to 6–7.

Week 15: at Arizona Cardinals

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	0	10	7	7	24
Cardinals	7	14	7	10	38

Game information

First quarter ARI - Kenyan Drake 5-yard run (Zane Gonzalez kick), 10:09. Cardinals 7-0. Drive: 10 plays, 90 yards, 4:51. Second quarter ARI - Kenyan Drake 1-yard run (Zane Gonzalez kick), 12:02. Cardinals 14-0. Drive: 6 plays, 67 yards, 3:18. CLE - Nick Chubb 33-yard run (Austin Seibert kick), 7:50. Cardinals 14-7. Drive: 7 plays, 83 yards, 4:12. CLE - Austin Seibert 44-yard field goal, 4:33. Cardinals 14-10. Drive: 4 plays, 2 yards, 2:12. ARI - Dan Arnold 6-yard pass from Kyler Murray (Zane Gonzalez kick), 0:25. Cardinals 21-10. Drive: 11 plays, 87 yards, 4:08. Third quarter CLE - Ricky Seals-Jones 2-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 8:54. Cardinals 21-17. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 6:06. ARI - Kenyan Drake 1-yard run (Zane Gonzalez kick), 1:40. Cardinals 28-17. Drive: 6 plays, 61 yards, 3:06. Fourth quarter ARI - Kenyan Drake 17-yard run (Zane Gonzalez kick), 7:25. Cardinals 35-17. Drive: 8 plays, 65 yards, 4:40. ARI - Zane Gonzalez 21-yard field goal, 5:18., Cardinals 38-17. Drive: 6 plays, 27 yards, 1:55. CLE - Ricky Seals-Jones 1-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 1:21. Cardinals 38-24. Drive: 19 plays, 91 yards, 3:57. Top passers ARI - Kyler Murray - 19/25, 219 yards, TD, INT CLE - Baker Mayfield - 30/43, 247 yards, 2 TD, INT Top rushers ARI - Kenyan Drake - 22 rushes, 137 yards, 4 TD CLE - Nick Chubb - 17 rushes, 127 yards, TD Top receivers ARI - Damiere Byrd - 6 receptions, 86 yards CLE - Odell Beckham Jr. - 8 receptions, 66 yards

Week Fifteen: Cleveland Browns at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary

at State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

• Date: December 15
• Game time: 4:05 pm. EST/2:05 pm. MST
• Game weather: Sunny, 66 °F (19 °C) (retractable roof open)
• Game attendance: 63,345
• Referee: Brad Allen
• TV announcers (CBS): Tom McCarthy and Jay Feely
• Recap, Game Book

The Browns traveled to Arizona for a Week 15 tilt with the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals scored the only first quarter points on a Kenyan Drake 5-yard touchdown run, to take a 7–0 lead. The Cardinals extended their lead to 14–0 in the second quarter with a Drake 1-yard touchdown run. The Browns responded with a Nick Chubb 33-yard touchdown run and an Austin Seibert 44-yard field goal to close the Cardinals' lead to 14–10. However, the Cardinals extended their lead to 21–10 late in the first half on a Kyler Murray 6-yard touchdown pass to Dan Arnold. In the third quarter, the Browns scored a touchdown on a Baker Mayfield 2-yard touchdown pass to Ricky Seals-Jones, but the Cardinals responded with a Drake 1-yard run to take a 28–17 lead into the fourth quarter. Early in the fourth quarter, Seibert missed a 45–yard field goal attempt wide left that would have moved the Browns to within one possession at 28–20. Instead, the Cardinals scored a touchdown on their ensuing drive on a Drake 17-yard run, his fourth touchdown on the day. After a Seals-Jones fumble, former Brown Zane Gonzalez kicked a 21-yard field goal to give the Cardinals a 38–17 lead. The Browns added a late touchdown on a Mayfield pass to Seals-Jones to make the final score 38–24.

With the loss, the Browns fell to 6–8.

Week 16: vs. Baltimore Ravens

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Ravens	0	14	7	10	31
Browns	0	6	3	6	15

Game information

First quarter No scoring plays. Second quarter CLE – Demetrius Harris 1-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (kick failed, wide left), 11:53. Browns 6–0. Drive: 9 plays, 45 yards, 5:19. BAL – Mark Andrews 39-yard pass from Lamar Jackson (Justin Tucker kick), 1:18. Ravens 7–6. Drive: 2 plays, 63 yards, 0:32. BAL – Mark Andrews 14-yard pass from Lamar Jackson (Justin Tucker kick), 0:09. Ravens 14–6. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 0:46. Third quarter BAL – Mark Ingram II 12-yard pass from Lamar Jackson (Justin Tucker kick), 7:36. Ravens 21–6. Drive: 13 plays, 69 yards, 7:24. CLE – Austin Seibert 47-yard field goal, 3:25. Ravens 21–9. Drive: 10 plays, 46 yards, 4:11. Fourth quarter BAL – Justin Tucker 31-yard field goal, 11:32. Ravens 24–9. Drive: 12 plays, 62 yards, 6:53. CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. 3-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (pass failed), 8:01. Ravens 24–15. Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards, 3:31. BAL – Justice Hill – 18-yard run (Justin Tucker kick), 3:39. Ravens 31–15. Drive: 8 plays, 84 yards, 4:22. Top passers BAL – Lamar Jackson – 20/31, 238 yards, 3 TD CLE – Baker Mayfield – 20/33, 192 yards, 2 TD, INT Top rushers BAL – Lamar Jackson – 17 rushes, 103 yards CLE – Nick Chubb – 15 rushes, 45 yards Top receivers BAL – Mark Andrews – 6 receptions, 93 yards, 2 TD CLE – Jarvis Landry – 7 receptions, 74 yards

Week Sixteen: Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns – Game summary

at FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Date: December 22
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EST
• Game weather: Sunny, 49 °F (9 °C)
• Game attendance: 67,431
• Referee: Alex Kemp
• TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson and Gene Steratore
• Recap, Game Book

With the loss, the Browns fell to 6–9. The loss eliminated the Browns from postseason contention for the 17th consecutive season, having last made the playoffs in 2002. The Browns were one of only two NFL teams, the other being the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, to not make the playoffs during the 2010s. The loss also meant the Browns would not improve upon their 7–8–1 record from their previous season, and it ensured the team's 12th consecutive season with a losing record, having last posted a non-losing record in 2007. The Browns finished 4–4 at home.

Week 17: at Cincinnati Bengals

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	7	9	0	7	23
Bengals	13	7	3	10	33

Game information

First quarter CLE – Damion Ratley 46-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 13:32. Browns 7-0. Drive: 3 plays, 56 yards, 1:28. CIN – C. J. Uzomah 15-yard pass from Andy Dalton (Randy Bullock kick), 9:53. Tied 7-7. Drive: 7 plays, 79 yards, 3:39. CIN – Joe Mixon 3-yard run (kick failed), 4:45. Bengals 13-7. Drive: 3 plays, 3 yards, 0:43. Second quarter CIN – Andy Dalton 5-yard run (Randy Bullock kick), 10:06. Bengals 20-7. Drive: 12 plays, 66 yards, 5:42. CLE – Austin Seibert 42-yard field goal, 6:53. Bengals 20-10. Drive: 7 plays, 62 yards, 3:13. CLE – Jarvis Landry 56-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (kick failed), 1:52. Bengals 20-16. Drive: 5 plays, 81 yards, 1:52. Third quarter CIN – Randy Bullock 47-yard field goal, 9:04. Bengals 23-16. Drive: 10 plays, 46 yards, 5:56. Fourth quarter CIN – Joe Mixon 2-yard run (Randy Bullock kick), 14:16. Bengals 30-16. Drive: 9 plays, 74 yards, 5:16. CLE – Odell Beckham Jr. 20-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Austin Seibert kick), 7:16. Bengals 30-23. Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 7:00. Top passers CIN – Andy Dalton – 16/28, 190 yards, TD, INT CLE – Baker Mayfield – 12/27, 279 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT Top rushers CIN – Joe Mixon – 26 rushes, 162 yards CLE – Nick Chubb – 13 rushes, 41 yards Top receivers CIN – Tyler Boyd – 5 receptions, 59 yards CLE – Jarvis Landry – 2 receptions, 82 yards, TD

Week Seventeen: Cleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals – Game summary

at Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

• Date: December 29
• Game time: 1:00 pm. EST
• Game weather: Rain, 64 °F (18 °C)
• Game attendance: 47,759
• Referee: Adrian Hill
• TV announcers (Fox): Brandon Gaudin, Robert Smith and Megan Olivi
• Recap, Game Book

With the loss, the Browns finished the season 6–10. They finished 2–6 in away games. This marked the Browns' 500th loss since joining the NFL in 1950.

Following the game, the Browns fired head coach Freddie Kitchens after one season.^[66] On December 31, the Browns and general manager John Dorsey mutually agreed to part ways.^[67] Dorsey had served as the Browns' GM since December 2017.

Standings

Division

AFC North
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(1) Baltimore Ravens	14	2	0	.875	5–1	10–2	531	282	W12
Pittsburgh Steelers	8	8	0	.500	3–3	6–6	289	303	L3
Cleveland Browns	6	10	0	.375	3–3	6–6	335	393	L3
Cincinnati Bengals	2	14	0	.125	1–5	2–10	279	420	W1

Conference

AFC v t e
#	Team	Division	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	SOS	SOV	STK
Division leaders
1	Baltimore Ravens	North	14	2	0	.875	5–1	10–2	.494	.484	W12
2[a]	Kansas City Chiefs	West	12	4	0	.750	6–0	9–3	.510	.477	W6
3[a]	New England Patriots	East	12	4	0	.750	5–1	8–4	.469	.411	L1
4	Houston Texans	South	10	6	0	.625	4–2	8–4	.520	.488	L1
Wild Cards
5	Buffalo Bills	East	10	6	0	.625	3–3	7–5	.461	.363	L2
6	Tennessee Titans	South	9	7	0	.563	3–3	7–5	.488	.465	W1
Did not qualify for the postseason
7	Pittsburgh Steelers	North	8	8	0	.500	3–3	6–6	.502	.324	L3
8[b][c]	Denver Broncos	West	7	9	0	.438	3–3	6–6	.510	.406	W2
9[c][d][e]	Oakland Raiders	West	7	9	0	.438	3–3	5–7	.482	.335	L1
10[b][d][e]	Indianapolis Colts	South	7	9	0	.438	3–3	5–7	.492	.500	L1
11[b][d]	New York Jets	East	7	9	0	.438	2–4	4–8	.473	.402	W2
12[f]	Jacksonville Jaguars	South	6	10	0	.375	2–4	6–6	.484	.406	W1
13[f]	Cleveland Browns	North	6	10	0	.375	3–3	6–6	.533	.479	L3
14[g]	Los Angeles Chargers	West	5	11	0	.313	0–6	3–9	.514	.488	L3
15[g]	Miami Dolphins	East	5	11	0	.313	2–4	4–8	.484	.463	W2
16	Cincinnati Bengals	North	2	14	0	.125	1–5	2–10	.553	.406	W1
Tiebreakers[h]
Kansas City claimed the No. 2 seed over New England based on head-to-head victory. Denver finished ahead of Indianapolis and NY Jets based on conference record. Division tiebreak was initially used to eliminate Oakland (see below). Denver finished ahead of Oakland based on conference record. Oakland and Indianapolis finished ahead of NY Jets based on conference record. Oakland finished ahead of Indianapolis based on head-to-head victory. Jacksonville finished ahead of Cleveland based on record against common opponents. Jacksonville's cumulative record against Cincinnati, Denver, NY Jets, and Tennessee was 4–1, compared to Cleveland's 2–3 cumulative record against the same four teams. LA Chargers finished ahead of Miami based on head-to-head victory. When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest ranked remaining team from each division.

Team leaders

Category	Player(s)	Value
Passing yards	Baker Mayfield	3,827
Passing touchdowns	Baker Mayfield	22
Rushing yards	Nick Chubb	1,494
Rushing touchdowns	Nick Chubb	8
Receptions	Jarvis Landry	83
Receiving yards	Jarvis Landry	1,174
Receiving touchdowns	Jarvis Landry	6
Points	Austin Seibert	105
Kickoff return yards	Dontrell Hilliard	421
Punt return yards	Dontrell Hilliard	107
Tackles	Joe Schobert	133
Sacks	Myles Garrett	10.0
Forced fumbles	Sheldon Richardson	3
Interceptions	Joe Schobert	4
Pass deflections	Denzel Ward	11

Individual honors

On December 17, RB Nick Chubb and WR Jarvis Landry were named to the AFC Roster for the 2020 Pro Bowl. This marked Chubb's first Pro Bowl selection and Landry's fifth consecutive and fifth overall selection. Chubb was the AFC's starting running back.^[68] On January 9, 2020, G Joel Bitonio was also named to the Pro Bowl as an injury replacement, marking his second consecutive and second overall selection.^[69]

In addition, LB Joe Schobert was named a second alternate, CB Denzel Ward a fourth alternate, and WR Odell Beckham Jr. a fifth alternate at their respective positions.^[68]

On January 3, Bitonio was named to the AP All-Pro second team, his second consecutive and second overall All-Pro selection.^[70]