As the Browns take the weekend off for their bye week, there are only two questions that are
being asked about them?

Was the 32-13 rout of the Cincinnati Bengals last Monday night the franchise-changing game that it appeared to be?

And can the Browns continue that momentum and do it again, beginning next Sunday when they meet the Miami Dolphins?

The Browns didn’t just defeat the Bengals, but rather they manhandled them. And that’s a good Bengals team, one that was getting it together following a rough start and beginning to look more like the club that got hot in the second half of last season, made it to the Super Bowl and came oh, so close to winning it.

So, from that standpoint alone, just beating the Bengals was huge. But, again, that it was so convincing made it exceedingly more impressive, and important. It kept the Browns, now 3-5, in the playoffs chase — it was a must-win — and they have nine games left to work their way back up through the standings.

But it won’t be easy, for they still have a long way to go and there’s little room for error.

The Bengals win provided hope. Will it be short-lived, or will it be the start of something big?

Steve King