The Cleveland Browns finished the 2021 NFL season on a, relative, high note defeating the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 18. While the Bengals played mostly backups, the Browns played as many healthy starters as they had throughout the game.
The 21-16 victory will have ripple effects going into next season as well as possible impact on Cincinnati’s playoff seeding. The Bengals did not play their starters much except for WR Ja’Marr Chase to help him set the team’s receiving record in the first quarter.
For Cleveland, going out with a win is not much consolation for a season that started with Super Bowl aspirations. Instead of playing for the playoffs, many fans were rooting for a loss to help the team’s draft position. The team now awaits the completion of Miami and New Orleans’ games to lock up their official draft spot.
The 2021 season ends with the Cleveland Browns at 8-9 for the season and looking at a long offseason. The most important part starts with Baker Mayfield’s scheduled surgery.
Here is what else we know after the Week 18 win:
