Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season is officially here, and the Browns are transitioning their preparation to the Bengals.
The Browns will kick off the regular season with a divisional opponent for their opener against the Bengals on Sept. 7 at Huntington Bank Field.
"I'm excited for the football team," head coach Kevin Stefanski said. "I'm excited for all the work that these guys have put in. It's a group that has done everything we've asked them to do. So, it's fun when you get to this point in the calendar and you have that game that's within a week and you're in the game week and you get to see these guys in the roles that they've earned. But for me, it never moves past very far the idea that these guys have worked so hard for this and the games, this is the fun part for them. It's a fun part for our fans as well."
Here are the main pieces of news heading into Week 1.
Kicking off game week preparation
After the three-day mandatory break, the Browns hit the practice fields on Monday for their first day back. Stefanski said even on the first day back, they are approaching this week as a game week from the jump.
"What we did today was mostly Browns versus Browns, meaning competitive periods, our ones versus ones, and that's in an effort to get the weekend out of our guys and then sharpen up what we're doing from a competitive standpoint," Stefanski said. "Now a lot of the stuff that we introduced on offense and defense was stuff that will be in when we hand these guys the game plan. So, you're trying to do both, but you never want to lose sight of competing. I thought our guys did a nice job today."
Injury Updates
C Ethan Pocic, who sustained a knee injury in the final preseason game against the Rams, was back at practice during the open portion of practice.
"He looks good," Stefanski said of Pocic. "He's rehabbed very hard, so he looks good."
LB Mohamoud Diabate was also back out at practice, and Stefanski said Diabate was able to get some work in.
DT Mike Hall Jr., who continues to rehab from a knee injury he sustained in Week 18 of the 2024 season, was not out at practice.
"No update, just continuing to work very hard at rehab," Stefanski said of Hall's status.
Assessing the Browns' roster heading into Week 1
The Browns announced their initial 53-man roster on Aug. 26 and then put together their 16-man practice squad. With the roster created, Assistant General Manager and Vice President of Football Operations Catherine Hickman highlighted the work that their staff put in throughout the offseason to build out their roster.
"We have a great opportunity, starting Week 1, to win football games," Hickman said. "And I feel very, very proud of all the work that we've done in the offseason between personnel and coaching."
The roster features a total of 12 rookies, from their six draft picks to undrafted free agents signed in the offseason, sprinkled in across position groups on both sides of the ball. Hickman noted having youth on the roster is critical in the process of roster building.
"It's credit to these young players – they've made the most of their opportunities, and they've earned their spot," Hickman said. "Our coaches aren't teachers. They're developers. And that's a credit to how Kevin (Stefanski) builds his staff. And then we have a pretty robust player development group and program that works very closely with the coaches to help the players develop both on and off the field. And that's something we take great pride in, and we're very intentional in how we build about it. Now, is it a challenge? Absolutely. But I would revert back to saying these young men have really earned their spot and they made it an easy decision for us to make."
Two of those young rookies are in the quarterback room with Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Each earned playing time during the preseason to gain necessary game experience in the NFL setting and were a part of the four-man quarterback competition. Gabriel is now set to serve as the backup quarterback behind Joe Flacco, while Sanders will be the emergency quarterback in Week 1 against the Bengals.
Since Gabriel has arrived at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus, Hickman has been impressed both on and off the field.
"Extremely mature, professional," Hickman said of Gabriel. "He has a process and how he goes about his craft, and it shows. There's a lot to work as you enter this league as a young quarterback, but Dillon (Gabriel) has really put the time in and worked with the coaches. So, I really look forward to seeing his trajectory and how he collaborates with both our coaches and (player development) staff."
Hickman has seen similar traits in Sanders over the course of the offseason and throughout training camp.
"He has worked at his craft, he's passionate, he's dedicated to it," Hickman said of Sanders. "He puts the time in, and those are really the things that you can really hang your hat on when it comes to these young players. And then he's shown growth. He's shown growth on the field. Again, it's a super small sample size, so we got to continue to be intentional with his plan and work with him, just like we will do with every rookie."
