We've had some time to digest the ins and outs of the Browns' 2017 schedule.
After a night to sleep on it, here are the five things that stood out most to us.
Home sweet home
It hasn't been all that long, but the Browns will kick off the season at FirstEnergy Stadium for the first time since 2013 when they host the Steelers on Sept. 10. Perhaps the more important development is the Browns playing a good chunk of their home games during the early part of the season when the weather is a bit more cooperative on the shores of Lake Erie. One year after playing just two of their first seven games at home, the Browns get to play in their own backyard for four of the first seven, including a three-games-in-four-weeks stretch during October.
Pivotal divisional stretch
The Browns will knock out half of their divisional slate by the end of September, as they face the Steelers in Week 1, travel to Baltimore in Week 2 and host the Bengals in Week 4. The Browns then go nine weeks between divisional games before rematching Cincinnati in Week 13, hosting Baltimore in Week 15 and finishing the season at Pittsburgh. The division is always a major point of emphasis for the Browns, and they'll need to be better against their most familiar foes if they want to take the next step forward. Cleveland has won just one division game in the past two seasons.
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Take a look at our 2017 schedule.
Primetime comes (very) early**
The Browns don't have a scheduled primetime game for the first time since 2010 but they'll have the national -- make that international -- spotlight shining on them Week 8. The Browns take on the Vikings at London's Twickenham Stadium on Oct. 29, and they'll be kicking things off at 9:30 a.m. EST. Though some of this year's International Series games will be played during the traditional Sunday time slots, the Browns and Vikings will be the only game playing. All of Cleveland's games will be played on a Sunday for the first time in seven years.
Plenty of time to recover
The Browns opted to go the traditional route with their bye week (Week 9), and it comes at a much more reasonable time in the schedule compared to last year (Week 13). Last year, the Colts bypassed their bye week following a trip to London because it fell so early in the schedule. Cleveland, though, gets its week away from the field at its exact midpoint of the season. Fortunately for the Browns, they won't be facing a long plane ride when they get back to work Week 10. Instead, they get one of their shortest possible trips when they head West on I-90 to take on the Lions.
Bring your coat
After some time under the sun in Los Angeles to kick off the month of December, the Browns face the prospect of four consecutive cold-weather games to conclude the 2017 season. Cleveland closes out its home slate with Week 14 and 15 games against the Packers and Ravens, respectively, before traveling to Chicago and Pittsburgh to finish up the slate. Last year, Chicago hosted Green Bay on Dec. 18 for one of the coldest games in NFL history with a kickoff temperature of 2 degrees. Last year's coldest game at FirstEnergy Stadium came Week 14, when the Browns and Bengals kicked off with a temperature of 28 degrees and a wind chill of 17.
Single Game Ticket Information
2017 single game tickets will go on-sale at a later date. Fill out the form below to be contacted when single game tickets are available.
