The Cleveland Browns knew they would have some advantages when the 2026 NFL schedule was released. They were going to play some of the worst teams in the league from last season, and their upcoming opponents combined for the lowest winning percentage in the league last season.
What they did not know was that the schedule was going to give them a historically rare edge as well. From Week 10 through Week 14, the Browns will play four consecutive home games, a streak that includes their bye in Week 11.
CBS Sports analyst John Beech has shown how history could be on the Browns’ side with that rare schedule advantage, as the teams that have had such a stretch in the future have fared very well in those home games.
“The Browns are the only team in the NFL this year that will get to play FOUR straight home games. This will mark just the ninth time over the past 35 years that a team has been given four straight home games (2025 Titans, 2021 Ravens, 2020 Steelers, 2016 Raiders, 2016 Dolphins, 2016 Packers, 2015 Titans, 2008 Texans). Of the previous eight teams to play four straight home games, six of them went either 4-0 or 3-1 during their homestand,” Breech wrote.
After facing the New Orleans Saints on the road in Week 9, the Browns will not have to leave Cleveland for more than 40 days. They will host the Houston Texans, Las Vegas Raiders, Cincinnati Bengals and Atlanta Falcons at Huntington Bank Field before having to go back on the road.
Of course, having so many home games in a row means the rest of the schedule is comprised of multiple road games. The Browns play six of their first nine games away from home, which could prove problematic as they try to adjust to new head coach Todd Monken with as many as nine new starters on offense.
However, the Browns could have another hidden advantage in their first two games of the season, at the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Potential starting quarterback Deshaun Watson has never lost to the Jaguars during his career, which includes time in the AFC South with the Houston Texans, and he won the college national championship with a last-second touchdown pass for Clemson at Raymond James Stadium, which is the Buccaneers’ home field.
Cleveland will also face a difficult closing stretch of three road games in the final four weeks, but if the Browns can reach Monken’s goal of late-season contention, they will gladly visit the New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens, and Bengals with high stakes on the line.
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