The Browns have turned the page from their loss to Philadelphia in the season opener.
Literally.
"We all balled up a piece of paper and threw it up in the auditorium," coach Hue Jackson said after practice Wednesday.
"Throw it, and we're on to the next one."
Instead, Jackson said the Browns are focused on the Ravens, who come to Cleveland with a reinvigorated defense that shut down Buffalo this past weekend.
"We can't worry about the past – it's this one," Jackson said. "It's about playing Baltimore and working through our process during the week to make sure we are ready to go."
The Browns, of course, will do so without Robert Griffin III, who was placed on injured reserve after breaking a bone in his left shoulder and will miss at least eight weeks. In his place, the 14-year veteran Josh McCown will guide a young offense brimming with playmakers eager to leave their mark.
"We want to be a high-level offense. We want to play at a high level. You have to behave that way and think in that mindset even before that happens," said McCown, who started eight games and passed for more than 2,000 yards and 14 touchdowns last season.
"It's just everybody on the same page and thinking that way that this is what we are going to do. We are going to go out and execute at a high level. It's a standard that we hold ourselves to in the walkthroughs, practice and then ultimately on Sunday."
Indeed, the Browns are hoping the work they've put into a retooled roster will trickle on to the playing field, and a home bout against the Ravens should prove to be a challenge.
"It's going to be challenging, but last time I checked, they can only put 11 out there," Jackson said, laughing. "They get 11. We get 11. It's going to be fun."
And if the Browns can leave FirstEnergy Stadium with a win, "that's what this is all about," Jackson said. "Then we are going to ball up some paper again and throw it again, and get ready for the next one."
Trust that whatever happens on Sunday, Jackson and Co. will keep turning pages.
"That's the way you have to handle this. Everybody sometimes stays stuck in the last game – that game is over with, we don't get that back," Jackson said.
"We can learn from it, but we don't get it back. We have to move on to this one and this week we have to be the best team for three hours or three hours and 10 minutes, 20 minutes, however long it takes."
