Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Browns: Week 5 NFL power rankings

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

The Cleveland Browns are holding steady in the power rankings as the NFL’s last winless team heading into Week 5 of the 2016 season.

The Cleveland Browns keep knocking, but have yet been able to find a way to capture that first win of the 2016 NFL season.

“We are a quarter of the way through the season and obviously not in the position that I thought we would be in. We have earned what we have. We are an 0-4 football team. We understand that,” head coach Hue Jackson said on Monday. “We still have some work to do. We understand that. Our guys are more determined than ever. Just seeing them today and talking to them, nobody is going to back down from the challenge. We understand the hole we have dug ourselves, but we know how to get out of it. We just have to keep working at it and continue to improve.

“To a man, everybody walks in this building ready to go. We are not going to blink, but we understand where we are and I do, too so we are going to fight our way out of it.”

While the Browns are the only remaining team in the league without a win, a case could be made that they are not any worse than the group of one-win teams. And even though the losses have been disappointing, there is no quit in the team.

“Contrary to what everybody believes, we are not rolling over and saying ‘uncle’ and just walking out there and saying we are not going to play,” Jackson said. “We are playing our tails off to win. That is all we’re interested in.”

Let’s take a look at where the Browns stand in the weekly power rankings:

Cameron DaSilva at Fox Sports:

No. 32: Cody Kessler hasn’t been completely disastrous in his first two starts, throwing for 467 yards and one touchdown. The defense, however, is a serious question mark. It made Kirk Cousins and Matt Jones look like Pro Bowlers, which shouldn’t happen with a remotely talented defense. (Pittsburgh No. 3, Cincinnati No. 10, Baltimore No. 11)

Chris Simms at Bleacher Report:

No. 32: Poor Hue Jackson.

He coaches one of the scrappiest teams in football. But Cleveland’s roster is too injured, young and thin at key spots to nail down his first win with the Browns.

I see progress, not success. Cody Kessler completed easy throws and went through his reads. Terrelle Pryor scored his first receiving touchdown. And Isaiah Crowell! He’s a true workhorse back who’s benefited the most from Jackson’s arrival.

Close doesn’t count in the NFL, though. Three second-half turnovers—including a big Kessler interception—sunk their chances. Jackson’s team is the only winless one in the league. (Pittsburgh No. 6, Cincinnati No. 7, Baltimore No. 12)

Elliot Harrison at NFL.com:

No. 32: Another weird week for the Browns, who lost yet another contest in which they were right there in the fourth quarter, while a team that might be lousier than they are won a game first (see: No. 30). Then there’s the ongoing saga of Josh Gordon. Well, on the plus side, another nice day for Terrelle Pryor, who scored again while catching five passes. Wondering if the Patriots are going to come in Sunday and put the new cover sheet on the T.P.S.. At any rate, one of these weeks, the Browns are going to come out of a nail-biter with a win. OK, probably not this week. (Pittsburgh No. 7, Cincinnati No. 9, Baltimore No. 14)

ESPN:

No. 32: The winless Browns have to play host to the Patriots in Week 5 for Tom Brady’s return. Stranger things have happened, but the Browns are very likely to remain the only winless team through Week 5. (Pittsburgh No. 3, Cincinnati No. 10, Baltimore No. 14)

Frank Schwab at Yahoo Sports:

No. 32: I feel bad having them at No. 32 because this team has played hard, and it has been competitive. I’m not sure anymore this is the worst team in football. It’s a young team that knows it isn’t going anywhere but it’s clearly buying in. That’s a testament to Hue Jackson. But it’s hard to move the only 0-4 team in the league up from No. 32. However, if they played some of the teams in the next few spots on a neutral field, I’d pick the Browns. (Pittsburgh No. 6, Cincinnati No. 10, Baltimore No. 16)