Despite loss to Chiefs, Browns solidified status as legitimate Super Bowl contender in Week 1

Coming off their first playoff appearance in nearly two decades, the Cleveland Browns entered the 2021 season with plenty of excitement and buzz.

The Browns fueled that confidence to grab their first playoff win in 17 years after beating their AFC North rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Cleveland carried that into Week 1 action against the defending AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs.

Despite playing the game without star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., the Browns answered the bell with an impressive outing. Cleveland more than held their own by going toe-to-toe against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

The Browns carried the lead throughout the second half, but a fumbled punt gave the Chiefs the momentum and field to pull ahead behind a Mahomes’ touchdown pass with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Kansas City had things rolling in their favor after that point. Still, Cleveland had their opportunity to take the lead on their final drive before Baker Mayfield committed his only mistake, a game-sealing interception.

Browns finally ready for Super Bowl contender label

The game's outcome may have been the same as their fate in the divisional round matchup last season at Arrowhead Stadium, but the feeling and vibe of the game weren’t the same. The Browns offense more than held its own with the running game, anchoring the effort behind 153 yards with four touchdowns.

Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt led the charge with 126 yards and three touchdowns. That allowed Mayfield to be a more effective passer, completing 21-of-28 passes for 321 yards.

Although he didn’t throw a touchdown pass, he effectively moved the ball down the field, with 14 of the 24 first downs coming via a pass. Mayfield also out-gained Mahomes (8.5) with 10.1 yards per attempt. More importantly, the Browns took care of business in the red zone, converting all four trips into points.

The recipe for success is there for Cleveland, and they hold no reason to hang their heads with the season opener loss. Mayfield echoed that confident sentiment during a recent interview with 92.3 The Fan, saying:

“I think there’s a fine line of walking, you know, beating yourself up about it and then realizing there’s 16 more. And I think we should beat ourselves up about it because we feel like we should have won that game, but there’s 16 more,” Mayfield said via Pro Football Talk. “This one should sting and you need to learn from it because we had that game and we gotta close it out.

So I think there’s a fine line of walking that and my message to them was, you know what? We’re going to be really good if we just do our jobs and continue to be efficient and move the chains and help out our defense by staying on the field. “But this one needs to sting. You need to remember that, that all the little things matter and that’s how you need to approach this week of practice.”

Yes, the Browns would have loved to grab a season opener win over Mahomes and the Chiefs, but the team more than showed they could hold their own. The Browns had every opportunity to pull off an impressive road, but it was the late-game miscues that ended that chance.

The pieces are in place for Cleveland to make noise again in 2021. It’s a big step up to consider them a legitimate Super Bowl contender, but if they continue to play with that mental approach and offensive balance, vying for a championship may be far more in reach than many may believe.