Assessing the Cleveland Browns' schedule by opposing QBs, from Joe Burrow to Aaron Rodgers

The NFL is a quarterback-driven league. Nothing can more drastically change the outlook for a franchise than who they have under center.

That's the gospel of the league, one that has been known for years. It's why the Browns did what they did in March 2022, to go out and acquire — off-the-field legal troubles and all — Deshaun Watson.

It's also why the relative difficulty of the Browns schedule, released Thursday evening, can change dramatically with an injury at just one position on the field. Which is why it's a good time to take a look at just what the starting quarterback situation looks like for the 17 games — but 14 opponents — that await them this season.

For some of the following, there's going to be a touch of guesswork here. Multiple teams on the Browns schedule picked quarterbacks high in last month's draft, so timing could be everything for when the game falls.

Time to play the schedule game of sorts, only by starting quarterbacks.

Week 1/Week 18: Cincinnati Bengals: Joe Burrow

There's a fascinating way in which the Browns can look at this matchup. Burrow is clearly becoming one of the elite of the elites in the sport. He's also 1-4 in his career against Cleveland, winning the last meeting last season in Cincinnati, and has been sacked 18 times in those games. He's also averaged 295 passing yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions against the Browns. It's going to be the undeniable storyline between now and the Sept. 10 season opener in Cleveland. There's also a chance, depending on how the season plays out, Burrow does the same thing in Week 18 he did in the 2021 season finale and not play should there be nothing on the line for Cincinnati.

Week 2/Week 11: Pittsburgh Steelers: Kenny Pickett

Steelers fans, at least many of them, believe they've found their heir apparent to Ben Roethlisberger in the 2022 first-round draft pick. It would be understandable if there were still some doubts about a quarterback who has thrown for 2,404 yards with seven touchdowns and nine interceptions in 13 games and 12 starts. Pickett threw for 195 yards and a touchdown, on a broken coverage, while completing 13 of 29 passes against the Browns in last season's finale. Guessing there's a much better feel for him by the time Pickett plays twice against the Browns this season.

Week 3: Tennessee Titans: Ryan Tannehill

The Titans selected University of Kentucky quarterback Will Levis with the second pick of the second round this year after having taken Liberty University's Malik Willis in the third round last year. However, the veteran Tannehill appears to still be QB1 for Tennessee, at least one would think three games into the season. Coming off a year in which he missed five games due to injury, there's certainly a world where it's Willis, who made two starts last season, or the rookie Levis by the third game. But the money is on coach Mike Vrabel playing it conservatively and letting the veteran who has won a lot of games for the Titans in a contract year have the first crack at things.

Week 4/Week 10: Baltimore Ravens: Lamar Jackson

You knew he was going to come back to the Ravens, right? For all the bluster and everything, once it got down to brass tacks, the former league MVP Jackson was going to get a deal done with Baltimore. So the Browns get the fun task of having to deal with arguably the most unique quarterback in the league twice. That is assuming he doesn't get re-injured at some point. If Jackson's healthy, he's more than a handful, he's an absolute nightmare for defense. Still, the Browns did a great job of containing Jackson the one time they faced him last season in Baltimore. Of course, Jackson's going to have a new offensive coordinator in Todd Monken, who spent the 2019 season in Cleveland. How that changes things up will be fascinating, especially in the first meeting in Week 4 in Cleveland.

Week 6: San Francisco 49ers: Brock Purdy/Trey Lance/Sam Darnold

Your guess is as good as anyone's as far as who 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan will have running his offense by the middle of October. It could be Purdy, who came on to start the final eight games, including the playoffs, and helped San Francisco get to the NFC Championship Game before he left with an injury. It could be Lance, the 2021 No. 3 overall pick the 49ers gave up a boatload in order to move up in the draft to get, only to see him suffer a season-ending injury in the second game of the season last year. Or, why not, the former No. 2 overall pick Darnold, who's looking for another opportunity to salvage his career after flaming out with both the Jets and Panthers. The guess is whoever it may be is going to be among the most efficient quarterbacks in the league, because that's just what Shanahan's offense does.

Week 7: Indianapolis Colts: Gardner Minshew

This seems like it could be, depending on how the Colts' season is going, the point at which first-year coach Shane Steichen might turn it over to Anthony Richardson, the No. 4 pick in last month's draft out of the University of Florida. Ideally, for Richardson's development, Minshew doing the workmanlike thing he's done before in Jacksonville and Philadelphia again in Indianapolis would allow the Colts to bring the rookie along at an acceptable pace while still contending in the AFC South.

Week 8: Seattle Seahawks: Geno Smith

Smith resurrected his career last year after starting just five combined games between 2015-21. He led the league in completion percentage at 69.8%, while throwing for more than 4,200 yards with 30 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Along with all of that, the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year also helped Seattle reach the NFC playoffs. The Browns should know by the time they get to the Emerald City if Smith was able to build off his renaissance season.

Week 9: Arizona Cardinals: Kyler Murray, maybe?

The question about whether or not Murray is the starting quarterback for the Cardinals when Cleveland native Jonathan Gannon makes his homecoming as Arizona's head coach is all about Murray's recovery. The dynamic-when-healthy quarterback tore his ACL and meniscus last season, and prognostications have pinned his return around midseason. Well, Week 9 would qualify for being the midseason. Even if he is back, there's little chance he's exactly the same player, at least for the game in Cleveland. And if it's not Murray because he's not ready, who isn't looking forward to a week of Colt McCoy build-up?

Week 12: Denver Broncos: Russell Wilson

You'll know very well whether Russ can still cook by the time the Browns head to the Mile High City. Either new coach Sean Payton will have worked his magic with Wilson and rejuvenated his career, or Russ may just be cooked. The questions about the quarterbacks is going to be a intriguing subplot to this game. Both the Browns with Watson and the Broncos with Wilson should have a definite idea of which direction their signal-caller is heading by Thanksgiving weekend.

Week 13: Los Angeles Rams: Matthew Stafford

This is providing the veteran quarterback with the benefit of the doubt that the injuries that sidelined him last season have gone away. If Stafford is healthy, then this game is significantly more interesting and difficult. Then again, the same thing could be said about a half-dozen Rams players. They're a little more than a year removed from a Super Bowl title. Stafford being healthy pushes them much closer to that threshold.

Week 14: Jacksonville Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence

How about a little sunshine coming up from the Sunshine State? If there were doubts about the 2021 No. 1 overall pick out of Clemson, his performance in guiding the Jaguars to the AFC South title and the second round of the 2022 playoffs should've calmed those down dramatically. Lawrence only seems to be scratching the surface of his prodigious talent. Plus, this game gives us a little Clemson-vs.-Clemson quarterback battle royale between Lawrence and Watson.

Week 15: Chicago Bears: Justin Fields

Fields' first regular-season start in Cleveland could not have been more disastrous. In his first career start in Week 3 of the 2021 season, the former Ohio State star was 6-of-20 passing for 68 yards and was sacked nine times. How does the line from Jay-Z's "Public Service Announcement" go? "Allow me to reintroduce myself." That would be Fields coming to Cleveland this fall. Despite going 3-12 last year as a starter, he threw for 2,242 yards and 17 touchdowns, while rushing for 1,149 yards and eight scores. The Bears have also done a lot to put players around their quarterback to help him as well.

Week 16: Houston Texans: C.J. Stroud

Davis Mills may very well start the season as Houston's starting quarterback. Stroud, though, wasn't taken No. 2 overall last month with thoughts of not getting him on the field as soon as possible. It feels like the 15th game of the season would be a point in time at which the Texans will have given the former Ohio State Buckeye the controls to the offense. Could make for a very interesting Christmas Eve in Texas.

Week 17: New York Jets: Aaron Rodgers

It's a different shade of green for Rodgers. The Jets are hoping it's not a different level of play for their newly acquired quarterback. By the time New York flies into Cleveland for the final "Thursday Night Football" game of the season, everyone will have a good idea if the gamble paid off for the Jets. The same, though, could be said about the team New York is facing that night. By then, judging Watson's performance won't come with caveats of time lost, just about how he plays in wins or losses.

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on Twitter at @ceasterlingABJ.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Joe Burrow to Aaron Rodgers: Browns' 2023 schedule by opposing QBs