Fundamentals cost the Cleveland Browns dearly in a 17-16 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, it's a tale as old as time

It's not that the Cleveland Browns lost their Week 1 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals.

There were no illusions about where this team was heading in 2025, attempting to pull off a difficult high wire act of trying to win now while rebuilding for the future.

Fans of this tortured fan base have dealt with plenty of losing. They knew what they were getting into this season and were largely willing to grin and bear it so long as it meant potentially getting out of the Deshaun Watson debacle next offseason and maybe, finally finding a franchise quarterback.

But it's how the team lost to the Bengals that is so demoralizing. At this point, the Browns have a stranglehold on a monopoly for inventing ways to lose.

Browns Stunned by Horrible Loss to Bengals | Played well Enough to Win, were let down by the Kicker The Cleveland Browns fell in horrible fashion. After both the offense and defense did enough to win, the special teams group let the team down. Andre Szmyt m...

This time, it was two critical missed kicks by Andre Szmyt – first was a third quarter PAT after Cedric Tillman scored a touchdown to give the Browns their first lead of the game midway through the third quarter. That miss allowed the Bengals to take a one-point lead when they kicked a field goal a few possessions later.

Then it was a potential game-winning field goal from 36 yards that Szmyt, in his NFL debut, pulled wide right. Same as the missed extra point. Kevin Stefanski touted Szmyt's consistent training camp and preseason as the reason they were confident in him. His teammates, expectedly, came attempted to life up their frustrated teammate. Stefanski wasn't totally committal, however, to whether or not they'd look to add some competition at the position. 

Browns fans are all too familiar with how this story ends, though. This franchise has been searching for a kicker for over a decade now, specifically since Phil Dawson left the organization after 2012. During that span, Cleveland has cycled through 14 different kickers. Warning, some of these names may trigger some nightmarish memories. 

Billy Cundiff. Garrett Harley. Travis Coons. Cody Parkey round one. Patrick Murray. Zane Gonzalez. Greg Joseph. Austin Seibert. Cody Parkey round two. Chase McLaughlin. Chris Naggar. Cade York. Riley Patterson. Dustin Hopkins. And now, Szmyt. 

That list is starting to rival the names of quarterbacks cascading down that Tim Couch jersey in a downtown storefront.

Szmyt's miscues proved to be the most costly, but he wasn't alone.

Jerry Jeudy dropped several passes, including one that deflected off his hands in the third quarter and wound up intercepted by DJ Turner. The same thing happened to Cedric Tillman as the Browns were trying to march down for one final scoring opportunity in the final two minutes of regulation, only with Jordan Battle coming away with the acrobatic interception.

Cleveland Browns Head Coach Kevin Stefanski Meets with the Media After Crushing Loss to Bengals Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski meets with the media after the Browns' loss to the Bengals. The Browns did everything they could to win the footb...

Rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr. had a key drop at one point as well that stalled a drive. Like so many gut-wrenching loses before it, it was the fundamental elements of football that cost Cleveland a win.

Special teams coordinator Bubba Ventroe spoke glowingly in the days leading up to Sunday about how the culture was different this year. But at the heart of this organization, the truth about its culture remains.

An inability to identify two key positions: quarterback and kicker, continue to hold the Browns back from being a real championship contender. Until they figure those two things out, and how to excute the fundamentals, the unforgivable, mind-numbing losses will persist. So will the heartbreak on Sundays.