The Cleveland Browns are back on the road for their final game before the bye week as they face the New England Patriots.
Unsurprisingly, the Browns have lost five in a row and 10 of the last 12 meetings against the Patriots, and have not defeated the Patriots as the road team since 1992.
Cleveland broke its three-game losing streak with a win last week over the Miami Dolphins, while the Patriots have won four in a row behind the rise of second-year quarterback Drake Maye.
The game will mark the fourth
consecutive start for Cleveland rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who has not committed a turnover as the starter, but has also not lit up the scoreboard or the stat sheet.
On Thursday, Cleveland’s coordinators held their weekly meeting with the press, and here are the key takeaways from what they had to say about the upcoming game against the Patriots.
Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz
Cornerback Tyson Campbell had a pick-six against the Dolphins to open the second half, and Schwartz is expecting more from the physical corner as he continues to get comfortable with the team:
“The more he gets boots on the ground and the more comfortable with things, you start seeing a playmaker. (Miami) made a long run early in that game and a guy like (De’Von) Achane is going to make some plays like that. We didn’t hit that great, but you know, Tyson tracked him down, we got a stop, held them to a field goal. And I think, you know, that’s probably the biggest thing.
“There were some times in that game, we had some bad field position, we had to punt back up, got the ball midfield. I was really pleased with our ability to respond to those things because that’s something that we haven’t always been at our best at, over the course of the year. Hopefully that’ll move, Tyson’s a big part of that.”
Defensive end Alex Wright suffered a season-ending injury in Week 4 of the 2024 season, but has bounced back to be a key part of the defensive line this year, according to Schwartz:
“He’s playing with great effort. He’s a factor in pass rush. He’s such a big guy, long, he can affect the passer in a lot of different ways. He’s playing really physical run defense. There’s a lot to like there.
“We’re getting a lot of production out of all of our defensive line. You guys know we play a lot of different guys, but, you know, Alex has certainly made a lot of plays. Some of those pursuit plays he was making in (the Miami) game were that’s what you have to do against a team, that’s throwing the ball quick and getting the ball out on the perimeter.”
Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees
The Browns have clearly defined that Dillon Gabriel is the starting quarterback and fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders is the backup. How are the coaches working to make sure both quarterbacks are prepared each week?
“You have to maximize opportunities, even if there aren’t a ton of reps to go around. You got to be creative with how you create some extra reps, specifically to get Shedeur ready if you can’t get a bunch of reps there. So, the good news is both guys are bought in and doing a good job of working hard and understanding how important those opportunities are to be ready for the team.
“And we have the right two guys, mentally, right now in their demeanor, and how they’re prepping, and how they’re coming to work every day. I think we’ve put together a good plan, starting with (head coach) Kevin (Stefanski), and pouring through the rest of the staff to make sure that those guys feel prepared to go play on Sunday.”
Cleveland running back Quinshon Judkins had three touchdowns in the win against the Dolphins and is 11th in the league with 467 rushing yards. The Patriots counter with a defense that is allowing just 77.1 rushing yards per game. What does Rees see from New England’s defense that makes them effective?
“They limit explosives, right? Their secondary tackles well, they do a great job up front with movement, and creating some penetrators, and canceling gaps and they’re fundamentally sound. They’re not very often in a disadvantaged point of defense. So, all of our guys got to buy into the run game. You know, it takes all 11 to be successful there.
“We have got to continue to find ways to be good in that area of the field and find ways to be explosive because they’ve limited that. They do a good job of being structurally sound and making sure that they have gap integrity, and then their secondary tackles well to get guys on the ground to limit those.”
Special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone
The Patriots are rolling with rookies at both kicker with Andy Borealis and long snapper with Julian Ashby. But the real player to watch is safety Brenden Schooler, who was a first-team All-Pro selection in 2025:
“Yeah, the kicker’s done a nice job. You know, obviously looked at the snapper in the pre-draft process. Both of those guys have done a nice job to this point. Look, the guy that is a huge problem is 41, (Brenden) Schooler. That guy is, he is everywhere. He’s the best in the league. It’s crazy. So, they go from having the best special teamer in NFL history, Matt Slater, who should be a first ballot Hall of Famer, to, now they have the next best special teamer in the league in Brenden Schooler.”
Safety Grant Delpit earned Special Teams Player of the Week honors for his game against the Dolphins. Having a starter contribute so well on special teams has a positive impact on the rest of the unit, according to Ventrone:
“You’re seeing a guy that is a defensive starter, that’s a Pro Bowl caliber like player at his position, factoring, you know, for us in multiple phases. A young guy, young undrafted guy, he’s going to see Grant Delpit setting the example and just be like, ‘Wow, this guy’s willing to do anything, going to take. So you just get that, it just trickles on down.’ ”
The Browns and the Patriots kick off on Sunday at 1 p.m. from Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. Stay tuned to Dawgs By Nature for coverage throughout the weekend and all day on Sunday.
