New and Improved: This Isn’t a Chiefs-Browns Playoff Rematch

Cleveland's defense struggled to stay healthy and thrive in 2020. This year, things look quite a bit different. Not only did the team bolster the pass rush by adding defensive ends Takk McKinley and Jadeveon Clowney to the mix, but it also revamped the secondary. Entering the fold are safety John Johnson and cornerbacks Troy Hill and Greg Newsome II. All of these players have specific strengths that will play to the Browns' advantage.

In the second round of this year's NFL Draft, the Browns also added a human chess piece to their linebacker room. Former Notre Dame standout Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah projects to be a safety-linebacker hybrid who is very light on his feet, both literally and figuratively, but is a good fit in the modern NFL. Safety Grant Delpit is also slated to return from a torn Achilles and will make his debut this year. This myriad of additions presents defensive coordinator Joe Davis with far more options than in 2020.

Offensively, not a lot has changed for Cleveland. One major "add," though, is wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. You can look up the Baker Mayfield splits with and without him all you want, but there's no denying that he gives the Browns a lethal threat to unleash in several different ways on offense. If he's still as athletic as he was before tearing his ACL in October, the Chiefs will have their hands full making sure he's accounted for.

While the Chiefs should be (and are) favored in this game, it should be a battle. Of course, there's always the possibility that the team's offensive line jells together quickly and Cleveland's defense can't figure things out on the fly. With that said, the inverse is also true. That's the beauty — and the struggle — of having shiny new toys to play with. They take time to get used to.

In this highly-anticipated Week 1 matchup, don't treat it like a carbon copy of the playoff game from the beginning of this year. Things have changed for both of these teams, and for the better. The Chiefs and Browns should be two of the best teams in the AFC this season, and it's a treat to have them square off so early in the schedule. Perhaps this can be a 2021-22 playoff preview but even then, we may be having the same conversation then that we are right now.