NFL Week 3 schedule: 5 teams that can’t afford to lose

4. Cleveland Browns

The Cleveland Browns are 1-1 after a close 33-29 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs and a 31-21 victory over the Houston Texans. Week 1 proved that Baker Mayfield and the Browns can hang with the best of them, but the following win was a little too messy against a deteriorating Texans team to convince anyone that Cleveland is a true contender.

Unfortunately for the Browns, wide receiver Jarvis Landry landed on IR earlier this week with an MCL sprain. Fortunately, Odell Beckham Jr. is likely to return and give Mayfield a pair of sticky hands to aim at and give the eighth ranked offense depth.

Winning their contest against the Chicago Bears is crucial for Cleveland to silence everyone putting them in the “pretenders” conversation. The Bears seem to be an incredibly average 1-1 team. The kind of team that top 10 teams need to beat with conviction. With rookie Justin Fields making his starting debut following a very questionable performance last week, the Browns need to take advantage of his inexperience and dominate on both sides of the ball.

A 2-1 start has the potential to put Cleveland in a comfortable spot atop the AFC North and solidify their spot as a top team. They simply cannot afford to waste that opportunity.