CLEVELAND — In what will mark their first game of the 2023 season, the Cleveland Browns will host the Cincinnati Bengals at Cleveland Browns Stadium on Sunday.
What follows is everything you need to know about the Browns' Week 1 matchup:
Game info, how to watch on TV, betting line:
Date: Sunday, September 10, 2023
Time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio
TV channel: CBS
Streaming: Paramount Plus, NFL+
Radio: ESPN 850, 92.3 The Fan, 98.5 WNCX
Betting line: Bengals -2.5
Over-under point total: 38.5
Preview
Coming off of a disappointing 7-10 season in 2022, the Browns enter the 2023 campaign with perhaps their highest expectations since re-entering the NFL in 1999.
After missing the first 11 games of his debut season in Cleveland due to a suspension for violating the league's personal conduct policy, Deshaun Watson enters his first full season as the Browns' starting quarterback looking to return to his former Pro Bowl form. Around Watson will be one of the most talented rosters in the league, featuring Pro Bowl running back Nick Chubb, wide receivers Amari Cooper, Elijah Moore and Donovan Peoples-Jones, tight end David Njoku and one of the best offensive lines in football.
On defense, Cleveland will look to bounce back from a disastorous 2022, which resulted in the firing of defensive coordinator Joe Woods. Enter Jim Schwartz, who won a Super Bowl as the defensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017 and will look to unleash a revamped defensive line headlined by All-Pro Myles Garrett and new additions Dalvin Tomlinson, Za'Darius Smith and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo.
The Browns won't have to wait long for their first big test, with the Bengals coming to Cleveland with their own Super Bowl expectations. After falling to the Kansas City Chiefs in last season's AFC title game, Cincinnati is looking to get back to "The Big Game" and features one of the league's most potent passing attacks with quarterback Joe Burrow and wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd.
On the injury front, Browns cornerback Denzel Ward will play after exiting concussion protocol this week, while new safety Juan Thornhill is out with a calf injury.