After a Sunday without football following their win on Thursday Night Football, the Browns are back at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus preparing for their upcoming matchup against the Broncos in Week 13.
The Browns will depart Ohio on Saturday, Nov. 30, two days before they will take on the Broncos on Monday Night Football on Dec. 2. The Broncos are fresh off a 29-19 win over the Raiders in Week 12, after which they improved to 7-5 on the season.
Their Week 13 matchup will be the second straight year the Browns will travel to Denver. In 2023, they struggled against the Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium, falling 29-12.
"I think it's a tough place to play regardless for any team that goes in there. We went in there last year and did not play well," head coach Kevin Stefanski said. "It's a good football team, it's like all these tough environments. It's hard to win on the road. So, our focus, obviously, it going to be playing good football to put ourselves in position to get a win."
Located at 5,280 feet above sea level, Empower Field at Mile High Stadium is the highest-elevated stadium in the NFL, which can present a challenge for players as they battle effects of the altitude.
"It's something that you understand is going to be there and you have to prepare for it mentally more than anything. Obviously, physically you do everything possible to get your body in the best shape for this moment," LB Jordan Hicks said. "But, if it's a long drive, it's going to be tough, you just better be able to push through it. But I think it's trying to get off the field as quickly as possible as a defense."
The Browns have earned one road win this season, coming in Week 2 against Jacksonville. The Broncos, who are 3-2 at home this season, are riding a two-game winning streak behind the emergence of rookie QB Bo Nix.
After throwing four interceptions and averaging just 165 passing yards per game through the first four weeks of the season, Nix has shown his ability to excel in head coach Sean Payton's offensive scheme.
Since Week 4, Nix has averaged 236 passing yards per game, leading the Broncos to a 7-5 record.
"He's doing a nice job," Stefanski said. "He's a good, young player. Played a lot of football in college, you see that. He makes smart decisions with the football."
While still a rookie, Nix has plenty of football experience under his belt. During the 2023, season, Nix set the NCAA record for the most career starts in college football with 54. Nix started his college career at Auburn in 2019 before transferring to Oregon ahead of the 2022 season.
Stefanski said that he's seen Nix's experience benefit him in his early NFL career.
"I think in general, it's like reps," Stefanski said. "It's getting another turn at it. When you look at quarterbacks a lot of times you look at games started when you're talking about college quarterbacks as a part of your evaluation. So, that's certainly something that I think he utilizes to his advantage and just experience and seeing different things."
While it is still early in the week and the Browns are beginning to dive into studying the Broncos on film, Hicks said that he was impressed with what the Broncos have been able to do this season.
With a Super Bowl-winning head coach in Payton, a promising rookie in Nix and one of the league’s top defenses in points per game allowed, the Broncos pose a threat to a Browns team looking for its second consecutive win for the first time this season.
"Obviously, they're playing really well. It looks like they're playing really good complementary football. It's a Sean Payton offense, they're going to scheme, they're going to do what works and they force you to play sound football," Hicks said. "Obviously, run game, they're going to test us there. We've got to be able to stop that week in and week out. But I think Bo Nix is playing pretty good for a younger guy, somebody that's dynamic, able to escape, make every throw and he's going to test you on all levels."
Hicks was one of many Browns players making snow angels after their 24-19 win over the Steelers in a snowy Week 12 matchup. He hopes that the Browns can carry the momentum gained in the win across the country when they face another challenging AFC opponent in Denver.
"It's always fun and infectious when you win, especially an emotional win like that, in the elements, at home," Hicks said. "It's infectious and I think everybody feels it. And so, you hope to carry that on, to keep this feeling going, to understand the situation we're in. We've got to focus on one game at a time and win every single one of them. That's where our mind has to be."
