There were changes made this offseason. Enter new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. All-Pro Myles Garrett was joined by newcomers Za’Darius Smith, Dalvin Tomlinson and Shelby Harris. After three games, the Browns owned a 2-1 record. Stefanski’s club had held the Bengals and Titans to field goals in Weeks 1 and 3, respectively, both of those games at home. All told, Cleveland’s defensive unit had given up one offensive touchdown over that span, whiled the Browns’ offense (namely quarterback Deshaun Watson) had a pair of turnovers returned for TDs.
On Sunday, the division rival Baltimore Ravens came to town. John Harbaugh’s club was a bit battered. Meanwhile, the Browns would turn to quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson with Watson down for the count.
Unfortunately for Stefanski and Brown, the Ravens still had arguably their top two offensive players. QuarterbackLamar Jackson overcame three sacks and a lost fumble and threw for 186 yards and two scores, both to tight end Mark Andrews. Jackson also ran for two touchdowns in Baltimore’s 28-3 win.
All told, it was pretty impressive performance for a resourceful Ravens’ team that has already won a pair of divisional road games in 2023.