2023 Cleveland Browns Schedule: Full Listing of Dates, Times and TV Info

The Cleveland Browns are looking to bounce back from a disappointing 7-10 season that included a 1-6 stretch early on that all but eliminated them from playoff contention.

Their hopeful pathway back to the playoffs was released Thursday alongside the rest of the league schedule.

The Browns are still trying to break out of a four-year stretch largely characterized by mediocrity, with the exception of an 11-5 season in 2020 that saw the team win its first playoff game since 1994.

There's reason to believe this Browns team will encounter significant struggles.

For starters, the AFC North might be the best division in football featuring three other teams who posted winning records last year, led by the AFC runner-up Cincinnati Bengals and a powerful Joe Burrow-led offense.

Lamar Jackson signed a long-term deal to remain with the Baltimore Ravens, and the Pittsburgh Steelers look like an improved team with a great draft on paper, including offensive tackle Broderick Jones and cornerback Joey Porter Jr.

Deshaun Watson also looked like a shell of the quarterback who starred for the Houston Texans. He did not fare well in six games, completing just 58.2 percent of his passes for 1,102 yards and seven touchdowns (five interceptions). His 6.5 yards per attempt marked a career-low.

Watson sat the first 11 games of the 2022 season due to violations of the league's personal conduct policy after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual harassment or assault during massage sessions. He has settled nearly all of the civil lawsuits against him out of court.

He'll be QB1 for the Browns in Week 1, but the way he played last year raises questions as to whether Cleveland may have made a tremendous mistake in signing him to a fully guaranteed $230 million contract and dealing three first-round picks to the Texans to do so.

On the flip side, the Browns still have some great talents led by elite edge-rusher Myles Garrett, a game-breaking superstar who's amassed 16 sacks in each of the last two years. Cleveland has a featured back in Nick Chubb (1,525 rushing yards, 12 touchdowns) and a bona fide No. 1 wideout in Amari Cooper (1,160 yards, nine scores).

Two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward remains in town, and the Browns may also have another star in the making in second-year cornerback Martin Emerson, who tied Ward for the team lead in pass breakups with 15.

With all that in mind, here's a look at the ledger after it was released alongside some analysis and notable matchups.

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2023 Cleveland Browns Schedule

Full schedule information is available on the team's official website.

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Analysis

Cleveland certainly has some concerns heading into 2023, but the schedule doesn't appear to be one of them.

The Browns are on the right side of the home/away shakedown this year with nine games in Cleveland.

They'll also play four games against the AFC South, a division that didn't have any teams win more than nine regular-season matchups last year. In addition, four of the five non-division opponents Cleveland will face on the road had losing records in 2022.

Only two of the Browns' six non-divisional home opponents had winning records in 2022 in the Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers.

Of course, the divisional games are going to be a problem. It's certainly possible that the Bengals, Ravens and Steelers all make the playoffs, leaving the Browns out in the cold.

The Browns will immediately be tested in AFC North action with a home matchup against the Bengals before traveling to Pittsburgh for Monday Night Football.

Cleveland did stay competitive in the division last year with a 3-3 record (the same went for every AFC North team), and hitting .500 in the AFC North again could be a positive result considering the Browns' out-of-division schedule.

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Notable Matchups

Simply put, if the Browns are going to be contenders, they have to win the majority of games where they appear to be solid favorites on paper.

Cleveland has home games against the three-win Chicago Bears and the four-win Arizona Cardinals. They can't afford to drop those games, especially with a daunting division schedule looming. Watson will notably head back to Houston after he made his 2022 debut against his old team, leading the squad to a 27-14 victory.

The Browns also have plenty of winnable road games, with the three-win Houston Texans, the four-win Indianapolis Colts, the five-win Denver Broncos and the five-win Los Angeles Rams hosting Cleveland.

Sure, some of those teams could vastly improve and become far better in 2023, but the Browns have to take advantage of the games where they're favored. Losing those matchups will likely lead to another season out of the playoffs.