2026 Schedule: Browns open with two straight in Florida, including Week 2 against Baker Mayfield and Buccaneers

Baker Mayfield won't have to wait long to see his old team and try to exact a measure of revenge following their acrimonious separation.The Browns will open the season with two straight games in Florida — at Jacksonville on Sept. 13 and the following Sunday against Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.The Browns haven't opened a season with consecutive road games since 1986.Emmanuel McNeil-Warren driven to be 'elite,' expects to be part of 'dominant' safety group"It's going be fun to start off the year going against the Jaguars with the turnaround that they had last year," coach Todd Monken said in the news release. "And with the Bucs, winning the division four of the last five years, it's the ultimate challenge."Our guys are going to have to be ready because it's going to be Florida, 1 o'clock, early in the year, so it's going to be hot. And I wouldn't want it any other way."Monken, a first-time NFL head coach at 60 years old, will make his home debut in Week 3 against the Panthers.The last time the Browns saw Mayfield he was quarterbacking Carolina in the 2022 opener, which the Browns won on a late Cade York field goal. Cleveland made Mayfield the No. 1 pick of the 2018 draft but traded him to Carolina in the 2022 offseason after making the blockbuster move to acquire Deshaun Watson as his replacement.Mayfield landed with Tampa Bay in 2023 and has gone 27-24 as the starter and been to two Pro Bowls.Justin Jefferson has big plans regarding Carson Schwesinger, Quincy Williams … and other observations from rookie minicampThe full NFL schedule was released Thursday night. The Browns will see plenty of familiar faces, whether it's Mayfield, Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski, Giants coach John Harbaugh or Bengals backup quarterback Joe Flacco.They will see just about everyone Sunday at 1 p.m.Cleveland's only scheduled primetime game is Week 4 at home against the Steelers on Thursday night, Oct. 1."There's nothing like getting a primetime home game, let alone when you end up with a rival within the division that completely kicks it up a notch," Monken said. "So we're excited, especially that early in the year. It's the first divisional game and the only way you can guarantee making the playoffs is to win the division. So obviously starting off 1-0 in the division will be paramount."The rematch in Pittsburgh is Nov. 1, part of three straight on the road around midseason."The season is made up of many challenges," Monken said. "That three-game stretch is going to be tough. If we want to be the team that we think we can become, we've got to overcome those challenges."A four-game homestand that includes the bye follows. The Browns haven't played four straight at home since 1990 and will host the Texans, Raiders, Bengals and Falcons, with the bye after the Houston game.QB Taylen Green stands out on field, among QBs: 'I really don't think there's anybody like me'So after playing six of the first nine games on the road, the Browns won't leave home for more than a month. They play at New Orleans on Nov. 8, then don't play away from Lake Erie until Dec. 20 at the New York Giants. That'll be the second trip to New Jersey, after playing the Jets in Week 5."With that four-game stretch, we can make a move and really build momentum into those other divisional games at the end of the year," Monken said.He spent the last three seasons with the Ravens as offensive coordinator and will face his former team Oct. 18 in Cleveland and Dec. 27 in Baltimore.Stefanski, who coached the Browns from 2020 until being fired after last season, will lead the Falcons into Cleveland on Dec. 13, the last game of the four in a row at home.The Browns are trying to rebound after three wins in 2024 and five last year. They have one of the NFL's easiest scheduled based on 2025 records. They also have one of the least strenuous travel dockets, as they only leave the time zone twice — for New Orleans and Tennessee, which are both in the Central Time Zone.The Browns' bye week is Week 11, which could be useful if they're in position to make a late push toward the playoffs.They will play the finale in Cincinnati for the second straight season."The NFL has gone to more and more at the end of the season you're playing divisional games," Monken said. "All you're doing throughout the year is to put yourself in position where the divisional games will matter at the end. The chance to win the division, and thus getting a home playoff game, which is the ultimate goal, to get a home playoff game in that stadium." Other schedule tidbits …The Browns and Jaguars have opened against each other once before, in 2000 in Cleveland.** The Browns have started with two straight road games 10 other times.** The other times the Browns have played four straight at home were 1948 — the third year of the franchise — 1961, 1962, 1973 and 1990. In 1948 and 1973, they played five in a row on the lakefront.** The Browns have won their last nine home Thursday night games, including four against the Steelers.2026 SCHEDULEWeek Date Opponent Time Network1 Sept. 13 at Jacksonville Jaguars 1 p.m. CBS2 Sept. 20 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1 p.m. CBS3 Sept. 27 Carolina Panthers 1 p.m. FOX4 Oct. 1 Pittsburgh Steelers (Thur.) 8:15 p.m. AMZ5 Oct. 11 at New York Jets 1 p.m. CBS6 Oct. 18 Baltimore Ravens 1 p.m. FOX7 Oct. 25 at Tennessee Titans 1 p.m. CBS8 Nov. 1 at Pittsburgh Steelers 1 p.m. CBS9 Nov. 8 at New Orleans Saints 1 p.m. CBS10 Nov. 15 Houston Texans 1 p.m. FOX11 BYE12 Nov. 29 Las Vegas Raiders 1 p.m. FOX13 Dec. 6 Cincinnati Bengals 1 p.m. CBS14 Dec. 13 Atlanta Falcons 1 p.m. CBS15 Dec. 20 at New York Giants 1 p.m. CBS16 Dec. 27 at Baltimore Ravens 1 p.m. CBS17 Jan. 3 Indianapolis Colts 1 p.m. FOX18 TBD at Cincinnati Bengals TBD TBD** Week 18 games TBDPRESEASONDate Opponent Time NetworkTBD at Chicago Bears TBD WEWSAug. 22 Buffalo Bills 1 p.m. WEWSAug. 27 New England Patriots 8 p.m. AMZ The post 2026 Schedule: Browns open with two straight in Florida, including Week 2 against Baker Mayfield and Buccaneers first appeared on BrownsZone with Scott Petrak.