The Browns are climbing fast in the Week 4 NFL power rankings, and the rise is hard to miss. Cleveland jumped another five spots this week, pushing its overall ranking to 20.7 after back-to-back wins have added up to more than a 10-spot improvement. In a division where every AFC North team sits at 2-1, the Bengals took the biggest hit, while the Browns keep inching toward the top 20.
Different outlets are still seeing Cleveland through slightly different lenses, but the common thread is clear: the wins are real, even if the belief level varies.
CBS Sports has the Browns at No. 25, up three spots, and pointed to the fact that few would have predicted a 2-1 start after the Week 1 blowout loss to the Jaguars. That same note also places Cleveland in a familiar and useful spot - tied for first in the AFC North.
ESPN bumped the Browns to No. 24, up five spots, and focused on Deshaun Watson as the season’s fantasy surprise. The expectation around Watson was low after his uneven play since arriving in Cleveland in 2022 and his return from two Achilles tears.
He entered the year as the QB29 in ADP, but he’s sitting as the QB10 so far. The passing line is modest at 587 yards and five touchdowns, but the turnovers have been kept to one, and his legs have become a real factor.
Watson’s 105 rushing yards rank fourth among quarterbacks.
NFL.com has Cleveland all the way up at No. 17, a six-spot jump, and the praise there starts with the defense. The Browns’ unit was described as back and operating with a cohesive style that has matched some of the league’s best over the last two weeks.
Mason Graham has opened strongly, Jared Verse is beginning to make an impact, and Carson Schwesinger has picked up where he left off in last season’s Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign. Watson also drew credit for a fourth-quarter clutch mode that NFL.com says hasn’t been seen since his Houston days.
The offense still has room to grow, but the site said the Browns have looked competent and earned the last two wins.
Sporting News placed Cleveland at No. 21, up seven spots, and tied the recent surge to Watson putting the Browns in position to win close games. The Buccaneers and Panthers came in back-to-back, and that stretch was framed as a welcome dose of offensive confidence under Todd Monken. Mason Graham also got a mention there as a defensive difference-maker.
Yahoo Sports is a little more skeptical, slotting the Browns at No. 20, up four spots. That writeup highlighted the two narrow wins over the Buccaneers and Panthers, while also noting that those teams are a combined 1-5 and that their only win came against a Cooper Rush-led Falcons team.
Cleveland was outgained 360-259 by Carolina at home on Sunday, and Watson’s late interception was wiped out by a questionable roughing the passer penalty. Yahoo’s bottom line was that anyone buying the 2-1 start is free to do so, but there are not many signs the current pace is sustainable.
Still, even that assessment left room for the one thing that has been impossible to ignore: the defense. After a rough Week 1 against the Jaguars, the Browns have been sixth in the NFL in EPA allowed per play over the last two weeks. Mike Rutenberg took over as defensive coordinator from Jim Schwartz this offseason, and while the opener raised concerns, the group has settled in since then.
Bleacher Report put Cleveland at No. 20 as well, up eight spots, and described the Browns as stacking wins against the NFC South by beating Tampa Bay and Carolina by narrow margins. The outlet noted that Watson completed only about half of his passes in the most recent game, but he has still done enough to guide the team to victories, throwing two touchdown passes without an interception in back-to-back games. It also pointed ahead to a short-week division matchup with the Steelers, a test of how Cleveland handles a little success.
USA Today ranked the Browns No. 18, up four spots, and called the start an unanticipated Deshaun Watson breakout that has pushed Cleveland back to 2-1 and into a four-way tie atop the AFC North.
In Other News...
Deshaun Watson Just Raised The Stakes For Clevelands Quarterback Plan
Deshaun Watson is still thinking long term, even as the Browns continue to sort through their quarterback situation. Speaking about his career outlook, Watson said he wants to play in the NFL as long as possible, pointing to Aaron Rodgers as the kind of veteran who has shown how far a quarterback can stretch his runway. He also said his motivation is to keep going until his body no longer allows it.
For Cleveland, that mindset matters because it keeps the conversation about its quarterback future from feeling like a short-term issue. Rodgers has already said this season will be his last, but Watson is taking the opposite view, and that kind of durability ambition can shape how a team plans around its quarterback room. The Browns may still be deciding how best to navigate the position, but Watson is making clear he sees himself as part of the leagues long game. [Read more 🡒]
Jerry Jeudy Reaches A Big Browns Crossroads On Thursday Night
Jerry Jeudys start to the 2026 season has been a quiet one in Cleveland, and the usage tells the story as much as the box scores do. Through three games, he has seen just five targets and turned them into two catches for four yards, a surprising level of involvement for a receiver the Browns still had every reason to imagine as a meaningful part of the passing game.
Instead, the early work has gone more heavily to rookies KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, who have been involved far more often and have quickly carved out a bigger share of the offense. That leaves Jeudy at an important crossroads, trying to find a way back into a larger role before the gap gets wider, while the Browns have to decide whether his path forward is inside their offense or somewhere else entirely. [Read more 🡒]
Browns May Soon Face A QB Decision Fans Didn't Expect
The Browns have spent much of the season sorting through a crowded quarterback room, and the picture could get even tighter soon. Dillon Gabriel is on short-term injured reserve but could be back before long, giving Cleveland another healthy arm to consider alongside the rest of a four-quarterback roster.
That kind of depth can be useful in October, but it also creates pressure on the front office to make a call before the roster becomes unwieldy. ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler recently pegged Cleveland as one of three teams that could move a backup quarterback for draft capital, and Gabriel looks like the name that fits the conversation best because of the depth chart and the Browns' roster constraints. [Read more 🡒]