The Cleveland Browns may receive a significant boost on Sunday, but not from their own players.
When the Jacksonville Jaguars visit Cleveland Brown Stadium for a crucial AFC matchup, they could be seriously undermanned on offense.
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, QB Trevor Lawrence will need to perform significantly better if he wants to return to the field.
From @GMFB: #Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence (high-ankle sprain) isn’t ruled out for Sunday, but he’ll need to get a lot better very quickly to somehow play… Plus, the latest on teammate WR Christian Kirk (core muscle) and the #Jets QBs.
Lawrence was assisted off the field after suffering a high ankle sprain in the fourth quarter of the Jaguars’ overtime loss against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Further examination revealed no structural damage, but he may not be ready for Sunday’s game, though the team would not rule him out immediately.
Furthermore, the Jaguars will be without No. 1 wideout Christian Kirk, who just sustained a core injury and will be out indefinitely.
Needless to say, this is tantalizing for a Browns defense attempting to rebound from a bad performance against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.
The Browns have now failed to achieve eight wins in back-to-back weeks, but they still have a legitimate shot at making the playoffs, especially with the rest of the schedule being reasonably winnable.
Of course, a lot will depend on the Browns’ quarterback situation.
Joe Flacco performed admirably on Sunday but was demoted to the practice squad, and it remains to be seen whether Kevin Stefanski would stick with Dorian Thompson-Robinson at quarterback.
