BEREA, Ohio — Saturday's playoff loss to the Houston Texans marked the end of the Browns season.
Players cleaned out their lockers and prepared to head home, wherever that may be for them. Some will stay in Northeast Ohio; others will head back to where their families have planted roots. Many will travel and enjoy some time off.
But everyone will keep the way this season ended top of mind as they aim to bounce back and return even stronger next season.
"I mean it’s hard, but you’re always looking to take a little bit of the previous year with you and use it as fuel. We’re one of the 31 teams that isn’t standing at the end and that hurts. So you always use that as motivation for the next year," head coach Kevin Stefanski said.
For some players, that motivation comes with a silver lining—this was the first true year of this core, especially defensively.
"This is year one in this defense, just talking about the defensive side. Year one, and we were the best defense, and usually it takes time for guys to get used to playing next to one another, but it seemed like we just clicked right away. So just imagine us coming back next season with a year under our belt with Coach Schwartz. It's going to be scary for these opponents. And I feel like with us coming off this loss guy will be really hungry, and I can't wait," safety Juan Thornhill said.
For others, the offseason motivation will be boosted as they spend time together in their off time.
“Yeah, when you have close-knit guys, it's kind of hard to not spend time together in the off-season. So I heard all these guys planning trips and stuff to go places. That's just like I said, just the special bonds that you build and it carries over because it's true. It's not, ‘Oh, that's just my teammate or that's just my brother that I've been going to war with and spent 10 days in Greenbrier where it was just me, you and the wall,’ right? So you go through that and you always keep those special relationships," linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. said.
Guys like Joel Bitonio, who has been on the team for a long time, believe that despite the way the season ended, there was enough winning to keep the connection of the locker room alive in their time apart.
"You just build these bonds, and I think winning helps everything. You talk about a culture and stuff, and it's like the winning obviously helps that stuff. But there's going to be guys that are here that are working that are, pushing each other and you know pretty much anywhere you go in the country you have someone that you played with that's going to let you stay at their house or go get a meal with," Bitonio said.
The lockers are empty and the building is clearing out. The Browns' season is over. But for the ones who will be returning to play in orange and brown again, the new year has just begun.
"This team—guys worked their ***** off all year. It sucks that we didn't get to get to the top game, but I feel like guys will be back next year really hungry because guys have that experience now. Guys been in the playoffs and played at the top level. So guys definitely will be back and ready to go," Thornhill said.
