The Cleveland Browns’ offseason started ominously enough, with a trade demand from their star pass rusher, Myles Garrett.

Garrett was fresh off his second straight 14-sack season and fifth Pro Bowl nod in a row. He also led the league with 22 tackles for loss while starting all 17 games for the Browns. But the offseason turned around quickly. General manager Andrew Berry brought in veteran quarterback help in Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett, and drafted a pair of rookies in the third and fifth rounds.

Garrett called off his trade demand and signed a contract extension to remain in Cleveland while making a then-record-setting $40 million per season.

The decision to pay Garrett, along with other choices made by Berry and the front office, has set the tone for what could be a fruitful 2025. But not everyone is on board with that theory. ESPN BET set the Browns’ win total at an abysmal 4.5. But with all the new arrivals, things could turn much more quickly. The biggest question still remains under center, and we’ll see how the new starter, 40-year-old Flacco, can manage the offense while the possible future of the franchise, either third-round pick Dillon Gabriel or fifth-rounder Shedeur Sanders, watches intently and learn.

The team holds a pair of 2026 first-round draft picks, too, that can assist in further building the roster.

“Expectations are higher than ever,” Garrett said as training camp opened in late July. “I expect to bounce back from last year, myself and defensively and as a team. So, the standard doesn’t change or at least it doesn’t lower. It just raises and improves. I think we have guys who are older, understand both sides of the coin. …The margins for this game are very thin.”

The Browns kick off the 2025 campaign on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET at home against the division rival Cincinnati Bengals on FOX.

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