Deshaun Watson and the Browns are heading into Week 5 with a little less cushion than they might have hoped.
Cleveland’s rise has been the kind of turn nobody really saw coming, with Watson leading the Browns to a No. 1 spot in the AFC North in his first season really on the field with the team. The boos have quieted, the cheers have taken over, and for now the Browns sit ahead of both the Baltimore Ravens and Steelers.
Still, the matchup with the New York Jets brings a wrinkle. The Jets are just 1-3, but ESPN pointed to a possible problem for Cleveland’s defense that could make things tougher on Watson and the Browns’ offense.
On Friday, ESPN laid out its Week 5 predictions and highlighted the Browns’ defense as a group that may be tested this weekend. Daniel Oyefusi wrote that “The resurgence of the Browns' defense has been at the center of Cleveland's three-game winning streak, but the unit could be shorthanded in the trenches Sunday,” before noting that “DTs Mason Graham (MCL, ankle) and Mike Hall Jr. (ankle) are dealing with injuries that will likely sideline them.”
That matters because, as Oyefusi added, “Graham and Hall have combined for five of Cleveland's 12 sacks, as well as nine pressures, through four games.”
There is also a small boost on the other side for New York. Rich Cimini noted that the Jets “should have fresh legs on offense, considering they ran only 32 plays in last week's clunker against Chicago,” and said offensive coordinator Frank Reich has said he is working on the offensive line and that it will be why “we get it back on track.”
In Other News...
Jets Mock Draft Outlook Just Revived A Familiar Quarterback Hope
With a 1-3 start already putting the season on shaky ground, the Jets are back in the familiar spot of being talked about through the lens of the draft rather than the standings. Their long-term outlook is getting extra attention because they are expected to hold multiple first-round picks in the 2027 NFL Draft, with one of them potentially landing inside the top five. For a team still searching for stability at quarterback, that kind of projected draft capital naturally invites another round of speculation about who might eventually become the next answer under center.
One recent mock draft revived that conversation in a big way by linking Notre Dame quarterback C.J. Carr to New York as a possible franchise fix. Carr has played well in college, and the projection has the Jets eyeing him as a long-term solution if they do end up in position to strike early. The appeal is obvious for a team that has spent years chasing certainty at the games most important spot, even if the real intrigue is in how the quarterback board could unfold before the Jets are finally on the clock. [Read more 🡒]
Geno Smith Faces A Jets Problem That Could Decide Sunday
The Browns have spent the early part of the season leaning heavily on man coverage, and that sets up an interesting test for Geno Smith and the Jets on Sunday. Cleveland has played more man than any defense in the league through four games, which means Smith will likely spend plenty of the afternoon dealing with tight coverage and the kind of one-on-one matchups that can either open things up or stall an offense in a hurry.
Smith has handled man looks well enough to keep the Jets in games, ranking near the top in success rate and completion percentage against those coverages. But the pressure point is hard to miss: he has also been taking sacks in those situations, and if that trend continues against a Browns defense built to challenge quarterbacks that way, it could shape the outcome of a crucial matchup for New York. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Face Growing Questions Over Adonai Mitchell Injury Handling
Adonai Mitchell has already missed the last two weeks with an undisclosed finger injury, and his absence is starting to raise more than routine availability questions for the Jets. The third-year receiver was ruled out for the upcoming game, and he has not practiced recently, leaving the team to manage a situation that has lingered without much clarity while the offense waits for another healthy option at receiver.
What has made the injury even more of a talking point is the uncertainty around its severity and the lack of any injured reserve move despite Mitchell missing multiple games. Reports have suggested the finger may be broken and could require surgery, but Aaron Glenn has pushed back on that line of thinking, leaving the Jets with a gap between the public explanation and the broader speculation around how serious this really is. [Read more 🡒]