No matter what additions the Cleveland Browns made in Free Agency and the NFL Draft, the upcoming season was always going to be tough in the talent rich AFC North division, a division which played host to three of last season’s playoff teams.

As it was, the Browns did well in the draft, snagging top running back, Trent Richardson, as well as quarterback, Brandon Weeden, in the first round. They bolstered their offensive line with Mitchell Schwartz in the second round while also adding underrated defensive players, Billy Winn and Trevin Wade, in the later rounds, both of whom could well make the final roster.

Although Peyton Hillis had a poor season for the Browns last year, they will miss the physical style of running he brought to the team, and much of Cleveland’s hopes for the coming season will be pinned upon whether or not Richardson can remain healthy for the entire season. No one doubts that Richardson has elite potential, and is arguably the best running back to come into the NFL in the last few years, but there are concerns over his durability.

Rookie quarterback Weeden also offers the unique quality of entering the league later in life, something Browns’ fans will be hoping helps his acclimatisation to the professional game, but there are worries that they lack the necessary receiving corps to help him shine. Mohamed Massaquoi can be great on his day, but often lacks consistency, and while Greg Little offers great potential, it remains to be seen whether he has refined his skills enough from his rookie year. Josh Gordon, a second-round pick out of Baylor in the Supplemental Draft, could yet prove to be the key to the Browns’ offense after performing very well in the preseason.

Cleveland has a young defense which is continuing to grow and develop, but they will need defensive stars, Joe Haden, T. J. Ward, Jabaal Sheard and Phil Taylor, to step up if they are to have any chance of stopping the increasingly potent offenses of the Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.

It is almost a certainty that the Browns will finish at the bottom of the AFC North, but they should be targeting an improvement on their 4-12 record from 2011. The playoffs will seem like a far-off notion for many Cleveland fans, but they have certainly taken steps towards improving their roster for the long term, hopefully ensuring they can challenge the division heavyweights of Baltimore and Pittsburgh in the coming years.

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An exciting AFC North clash between the Cleveland Browns (4-7) and Cincinnati Bengals (7-4) ended in a 23-20 victory for the Bengals, who have been one of the surprise teams of the year. The Browns welcomed back running backs Peyton Hillis and Montario Hardesty from injury, as they joined Chris Ogbonnaya, who has performed admirably during their absences.

Cleveland were still without the services of defensive back T. J. Ward however, and Usama Young had to shoulder the responsibilities at strong safety. Cincinnati had injury concerns of their own, and were without defensive end Carlos Dunlap and offensive linemen Anthony Collins and Clint Boling.

They were boosted though by left tackle Andrew Whitworth being declared active after a thigh injury, and rookie wide receiver A. J. Green returning after missing their last game against the Baltimore Ravens.

Normally a ferocious contest between two sides battling it out for third place in the AFC North, the Bengals form in the first half of the season had many predicting that the Browns would struggle, as Cincinnati look to upset the old order of both Baltimore and the Pittsburgh Steelers dominating the division.

Cleveland, however, had no intention of sitting back and letting the game be dictated to them, and took an early lead when Colt McCoy found Jordan Norwood for a 24-yard touchdown pass at the end of an 82-yard drive for the visiting side. The Bengals hit back quickly though, leveling the scores by the end of the first quarter, as running back Cedric Benson found space and cruised in for a 16-yard touchdown, taking a big hit from the Cleveland defense as coasted into the end zone.

This served to reignite the Browns, who regained the lead in the second quarter, successfully kicking a field goal, before extending their lead to 10 points when rookie Greg Little climbed high at the back of the end zone to collect a 3-yard touchdown pass from McCoy. Both teams traded field goals early in the second half, maintaining the Browns lead of 10 points.

This lead was then cut to just three when Andy Dalton, who continued his excellent recent form, finishing with 271 yards, a touchdown and no interception, found tight end Jermaine Gresham for a 22-yard touchdown, with Gresham leaping acrobatically to take the ball above the heads of the Cleveland defense.

The game was tightly poised as time began to run down in the fourth quarter, but kicker Mike Nugent kept his cool as he kicked two field goals, the latter coming with just over a minute left on the clock, to give the Bengals a deserved victory over their AFC North rivals.

Cincinnati will now be looking to upset both Baltimore and Pittsburgh as they keep alive their goal of finishing top of the AFC North, and the return from injury of Green, who caught three receptions 110 yards, as well as the Pro-Bowl form of Dalton could combine to make this dream a very real possibility.

Cleveland continue to have a disappointing season, but will be more optimistic going into games now with the return of their two best running backs, and Hillis in particular will be keen to impress, with the Browns already admitting they may be willing to let the inconsistent tailback leave at the end of the season.

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The Houston Texans (6-3) enjoyed a comfortable 30-12 victory over the visiting Cleveland Browns (3-5) at Reliant Stadium. The win improves what is already the Texans’ best start to a season in franchise history, and Head Coach Gary Kubiak will be pleased with what he saw from his side, not least from rookie linebacker Brooks Reed, who collected two sacks and generally looked solid in defense, helping the keep the Browns to just 172 yards.

With Cleveland only managing to put up 107 points in their opening seven games, their offense was always likely to struggle, especially against Houston, who have the third best defense in the NFL, allowing just 286.8 ypg. However, with the Browns currently fifth in the yards allowed table, and dangerous wide receiver Andre Johnson still sidelined with injury, Defensive Coordinator Dick Jauron will be left wondering what happened to his side.

The Texans put themselves into a commanding position in the first quarter, registering two touchdowns, the first a 27-yard rush from Ben Tate, and the second was a darting run from quarterback Matt Schaub from two yards out. Arian Foster compounded Cleveland’s problems when he rushed for 19 yards and a touchdown in the second quarter, extending Houston’s lead.

With just under five minutes left to play, Colt McCoy sparked Cleveland’s fans hopes of a comeback, when he found Josh Cribbs for a two-yard touchdown pass, but it proved too little too late for the Browns, who had looked second best all game long.

The game was won on the ground, with Foster recording 124 yards on 19 carries, and Tate racking up 115 yards on just 12 carries. Stripped of both Peyton Hillis and Montario Hardesty, the Browns could not make a similar impact on the ground, with running back Chris Ogbonnaya only managing to rush for 28 yards from his 13 attempts.

Cleveland, lacking an effective running option, turned to the passing game. With Mohamed Massquoi out for a second consecutive game, McCoy targeted Cribbs consistently. Although Cribbs did grab a touchdown pass to help his team, the wide receiver could only average ten yards per reception, and rarely troubled an in-control Houston defense.

Browns Head Coach Pat Shurmur will be hoping that both Hillis and Massaquoi can return to full training this week, as their meagre haul of 12 points just goes to highlight how toothless the Browns offense has looked of late.

The Browns will look to pick themselves up in Week 10 when they face the St Louis Rams at home, one of the few teams to have actually scored less points than the Browns prior to the Week Nine games. Meanwhile, the Texans will visit the inconsistent Buccaneers as they attempt to further cement their place at the top of the AFC South.

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The San Francisco 49ers (6-1) improved their record with a 20-10 victory over the visiting Cleveland Browns (3-4) at Candlestick Park. Although the Browns were tipped by many to fall short against the 49ers, Head Coach Pat Shurmur will be disappointed that his side was unable to kick on from their hard-fought win over the Seahawks a week ago, and move beyond the .500 mark.

The Browns were without both first choice running back, Peyton Hillis, and wide receiver, Mohamed Massaquoi, who currently leads the team in receiving yards. With these omissions, it looked as if they may struggle offensively, especially against the in-form defense of the 49ers.

Throw into the mix that Cleveland have only had nine plays of 20 or more yards so far in the season, by far the worst record in the league, and the Browns looked up against it from the off.

With Cleveland’s defense performing so well against the Seahawks last week, allowing just 137 yards, Defensive Coordinator Dick Jauron will have been unhappy that San Francisco managed to put together two drives, culminating in a rushing touchdown and passing touchdown for Fred Gore and Michael Crabtree respectively, without his side being able to offer anything in return.

While Gore was dominating the rushing game for the 49ers, making 134 yards on 31 carries, the Browns, bereft of Hillis, were struggling to make a similar impact, with Chris Ogbonnaya leading for Cleveland with 37 yards from 11 carries.

Despite Colt McCoy putting in a valiant effort — completing 22 of his 34 attempts for 241 yards — the 49ers defense held strong;  linebacker Navarro Bowman had an impressive performance with a game-high 11 tackles to his name.

The visitors did put themselves in with a good chance of securing a comeback in the fourth when McCoy found Josh Cribbs for a 45-yard touchdown pass with just over six minutes left in the game. This reduced San Francisco’s lead to just seven points, making it a one possession game and setting up a tense ending.

Unfortunately for the Browns, though, San Francisco worked themselves into decent field position before David Akers kicked a field goal to make it a two possession game, effectively ending any hopes Cleveland had of heading home with the victory.

The Browns remain on the road, travelling to Houston to play the Texans next week in what will be another difficult match for Shurmur’s side, and what could very well be a game that plays a big part in whether Cleveland will regard this season as a success.

The 49ers, who will also be on the road next week, playing the Washington Redskins, are looking like they could make a real impact in the playoffs this season, and are already four games clear of their nearest divisional rivals, the Seahawks.

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