Four NFL teams’ playoff dreams ended early this weekend. In the AFC, the Browns were surprisingly stomped by the Texans in Houston, while the Dolphins battled frigid conditions and a brutal run of injuries in a frustrating loss to the Chiefs. In the NFC, the Cowboys were embarrassed at home by a dominant performance by Jordan Love and the Packers, and Jared Goff gained a measure of revenge on his former team by knocking Matthew Stafford and the Rams out of the playoffs in Sunday’s nightcap.
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For these four organizations, the offseason begins now. And while they’ll probably look back and be pleased to have advanced to the postseason, the goal naturally will be to take a step forward and make it further in 2024. Let’s look at the big question for each of the four teams coming out of their postseason loss and how they might rectify or solve that issue to be better next season. I’ll go in chronological order, starting with Cleveland:
The Joe Flacco experience ended in tears for Browns fans on Saturday. Flacco was his usual self, combining inch-perfect passes with turnover-worthy decisions. The Texans took two Flacco picks to the house in a matter of minutes of real time. The Browns had been able to respond earlier in the season by forcing turnovers, but as I mentioned in my piece about potential flaws for postseason contenders, they matched up against a Texans team that protected the football at the league’s best rate when C.J. Stroud was under center. With the defense struggling after Myles Garrett’s shoulder injury and unable to force any takeaways, Houston lapped Cleveland in a 45-14 victory.
Now, after an impressive season and a Flacco fairytale, the Browns will need to get back to the drudging reality of their biggest problem. Watson hasn’t played since midseason after undergoing surgery on his injured throwing shoulder. He didn’t get to suit up against his former team during their two matchups with the Browns this season, and while Cleveland should undoubtedly regard the 2023 season as a success, there are even more big-picture questions about the most notable decision of Andrew Berry’s tenure as general manager.
