“I would rather win by forty points and be free of these close games,” However, our ability to perform in those circumstances speaks volumes about the guys that make up this team.”
Sure, winning by 40 points sounds a lot less nerve-wracking than the close games the Browns have been playing. However, the reality is that in the NFL, the margin of error is extremely thin due to the small differences between two teams. A good indicator of how far your team will go in a season is how they perform when faced with obstacles.
Among the hardest teams in the league, the Browns are a team that never gives up, no matter what.
This season, Cleveland is 4-2 in one-score games. The two losses came from a helmet-tip interception in Seattle and a strip sack scoop and score in Pittsburgh. No matter how those two turned out, each of the other four has been exceptional in its own right.
Recall the two walk-off kicks against the Ravens and Steelers, the defensive stop against the 49ers, and the thrilling victory against the Colts. Every game with a single score tells a unique tale of the Browns pulling through when it really counted.
The Cleveland Browns have already established themselves as a team that no one will want to face in the playoffs as the number of relevant teams decreases during the final stretch of the season. They just don’t give up, despite being perhaps the NFL’s most injured team.
When their best player was injured in Week 2, Cleveland might have declared bankruptcy. Deshaun Watson’s season ended the second time they lost him, and they could have done it again the first time. However, they chose not to, and they have risen to every challenge that has been thrown at them.
Opponents should prepare for a fistfight, regardless of the Cleveland player, as that is what these tenacious Cleveland Browns will deliver.