Browns Depth Chart Faces Third-Worst AFC North Odds in 2026
Pro Football Network put the browns depth chart in a tough spot for 2026, ranking Cleveland with the third-worst chance of winning the AFC North. The Browns finished last season with five victories, even after an offseason that brought an improved roster and almost everything changing around them.
Cleveland’s 2026 opening
That ranking leaves Cleveland grouped with the division’s lower-tier contenders before the 2026 NFL season even gets going. The Browns were one of eight teams at the bottom of their division last year, and that put them in the same broad category as clubs trying to climb out of a poor finish rather than protect a lead.
The complication is that the AFC North did not stay static. Three of the four teams fired their coaches last year, and Zac Taylor is the only remaining coach from last season. Mike McCarthy is now the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, which adds another change point to a division that already turned over quickly.
Burrow, Jackson, and Pittsburgh
Cleveland’s path is tied to more than its own roster. If Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson are healthy, the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens should be more competitive in 2026, which makes the division race tougher for the Browns even after their offseason upgrades.
That is where the Browns’ low ranking becomes the real story. The team improved its roster, but the division also looks capable of resetting around healthier quarterbacks and a new Pittsburgh staff. Cleveland is being judged against a field that could be stronger than it was a year ago.
What the Browns face
The Browns are not being projected as a clear favorite, but they are also not stuck in last season’s exact shape. Their five-win finish sits beside the offseason changes and the broader churn in the AFC North, and that is why the gap between improvement and expectation still matters.
For Cleveland, the practical takeaway is simple: the roster changes have not moved it out of the division’s danger zone. The Browns can point to a better group on paper, but the ranking still places them behind the teams with the clearest path to more wins in 2026.
