Browns Edge Panthers 21-18, Move Into AFC North Tie Before Steelers Visit
The short version
- The Browns beat the Panthers 21-18 in their home opener on Sept. 27, with Deshaun Watson throwing the winning touchdown pass.
- Cleveland is 2-1 after a second straight win and sits tied for first place in the AFC North.
- The Browns host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night in a nationally televised game.
- Cleveland holds the Rams' first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, and Myles Garrett's injury timeline could affect it.
- League notes: Drake Maye called the Patriots' offense and his own play 'unacceptable'; the Dolphins gave a discouraging outlook on De'Von Achane's injury.
Deshaun Watson threw the winning touchdown as Cleveland improved to 2-1 and moved into a first-place AFC North tie ahead of Thursday's visit from Pittsburgh.
The Cleveland Browns opened their home schedule with a 21-18 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, September 27, at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland. Deshaun Watson threw the winning touchdown pass and celebrated a fourth-quarter two-point conversion during the Week 3 contest. The result gave Cleveland a second consecutive victory and lifted the team to 2-1 on the season.
The start has placed the Browns in territory few expected. Cleveland woke up Monday morning tied for first place in the AFC North, and columnist Terry Pluto made a point of the 2-1 record that almost nobody predicted. Even the local questions have flipped, with an Akron Beacon Journal piece asking whether the Browns could win two straight and answering with a yes.
Sunday's performance was more workmanlike than polished. The Beacon Journal's highlights showed Watson directing a comeback, and Browns Zone wrote that he delivered in the decisive moments of an uneven afternoon. A Dawgs By Nature recap credited both Watson and the defense for their play in the home opener.
Postgame coverage dug further into the details. Thomas Moore's winners-and-losers breakdown for Dawgs By Nature mixed praise with criticism, while Jared Mueller offered 15 takeaways from the victory. A fourth-quarter photo of Watson celebrating the two-point conversion, taken by Nick Cammett of Getty Images, accompanied the roundup.
One problem persisted through the win. Cleveland's penalties drew a sharp review from cleveland.com, which saw the penalty trouble producing exactly the sort of football Todd Monken wants no part of, and the outlet cautioned that the mistakes will be difficult to overcome if they continue.
Attention now turns to a short week and a divisional showcase. The Browns host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night in a nationally televised game, giving viewers a prime-time window to watch Cleveland try to build on its share of first place. The report did not include a kickoff time or broadcast network.
Pittsburgh will arrive with momentum of its own after beating the Cincinnati Bengals. That loss drew heavy criticism in Bengals coverage, where the postgame discussion centered on everything that went wrong for Cincinnati.
Beyond the current schedule, Cleveland supporters also have a reason to monitor the Los Angeles Rams. The Browns hold the Rams' first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, and Dawgs By Nature noted that Myles Garrett's injury timeline could affect how that selection plays out.
The roundup also carried two notes from around the league. New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye called his offense's showing and his own play "unacceptable." The Miami Dolphins, for their part, offered a discouraging outlook on running back De'Von Achane's injury after a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
