The Cleveland Browns youngest players showed promise despite dropping their season opener to Cincinnati Bengals
Week 1 arrived in Cleveland with what seemed like a little less buzz to it than usual. Apathy reached record highs during an embarrassing 3-14 campaign last year. The Browns offseason then came about injecting some youth into their roster, while still trying to win with players stars like Myles Garrett and Denzel Ward still in their prime.
So despite being a football crazed city, Week 1 arrived with what felt like swaths of fans taking a wait-and-see approach to the 2025 season.
Wait no, more. The Browns provided an exciting glimpse into the future during a 17-16 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. From the outset of the game, there was an obvious attempt to get the Browns youngest players involved early. It paid off as many of them ended up as the biggest stars of the game.
Cleveland's first series of the game opened up with a handoff to rookie running back Dylan Sampson for five yards. One play later, it was rookie right end Harold Fannin Jr.'s turn, hauling in a short, five-yard pass from Joe Flacco to pick up the first down. One play later, rookie wide receiver Isaiah Bond got his first touch on a screen pass off to the left for another five-yard gain.
The training wheels were officially off.
By the time the Browns first offensive series – a drive that ate up 9:50 of game clock – ended in a touchdown, Sampson had three total touches, Fannin had four, and rookies had contributed to half of the 16 total plays they ran on way to the end zone.
They didn't stop there. At one point early in the third quarter Sampson and Fannin were the teams leading receivers. The former had five receptions for 47 yards. The latter, three receptions for 34 yards.
That held true by the time the final whistle as well, with Sampson finishing the contest with eight receptions for 64 yards and Fannin filing in right behind him with seven for 63. Together they combined for nearly half of Flacco's total passing yards for the game.
On the other side of the ball, rookie linebacker Carson Schwesinger continued to show why his teammates believe he'll be an All-Pro in short order. The UCLA product led the team in tackles with eight, and even broke up a pass with a perfectly timed, diving hit that left running back Chase Brown a bit rattled. Schwesinger was also greeted by several of his teammates celebrating the effort after the play.
Other young players stepped up in a big way too. DE Isaiah McGuire helped bring down Joe Burrow on a series that ended in three straight sacks of the star QB, forcing a quick punt by the Bengals nearing the mid-way point of the fourth quarter.
Cedric Tillman, entering his third season with lofty expectations after the Browns committed to him being their No. 2 wide receiver, showed up in a big way too. He caught five passes for 52 yards and a touchdown that gave the Browns their first lead of the game with 7:24 to go in the third quarter.
Unfortunately the moment was spoiled by Andre Szmyt's missed PAT attempt, which prevented the game from being tied about five minutes later, when the Bengals recaptured the lead with a 35-yard field goal attempt. It wasn't even the worst of Szmyt's misses for the day, as his 36-yard field goal attempt also sailed wide right and spoiled what could have been a memorable season opening win.
Those two miscues in particular mostly overshadowed those that other young players made. Fannin dropped a key pass on third and five with a little over 14 minutes to go in the game as the Browns were approaching the red zone. They went for it on fourth down and Jerry Jeudy followed suit with another frustrating drop that ended a promising drive in it's tracks, proving even the veterans aren't perfect.
Tillman's euphoric touchdown was also followed with a costly tipped pass near midfield that deflected off his hands and into those of Bengals safety Jordan Battle's for what was essentially a game-ending interception.
No one said this youth movement wouldn't be without growing pains. But Browns fans can leave Huntington Bank Field on Sunday knowing this team will be worth watching this year. The competitiveness was there for all four quarters in a down-to-the-wire clash with a division rival. The youngest players, maybe most notably the rookies, were the team's biggest stars.
Losing the way Cleveland did on Sunday will overshadow most of the good that took place in a down-to-the-wire mathcup with a division rival. Once fans have a chance to collect themselves though, there are signs of a bright future, which will continue to play out over the 16 games.