Projecting what the NFL will look like in five years is a near-impossible task as injuries, changes to the game, or incoming athletes will have a yet-to-be-determined impact on which franchises will be successful over the next half-decade.
Despite those challenges, analysts at Sports Illustrated attempted to project the next five years’ Super Bowl teams from each conference.
For Cleveland Browns fans, the results were not flattering.
An article detailing how eight analysts projected the next five Super Bowl matchups revealed that the Browns were not selected by a single analyst.
The Kansas City Chiefs were the top team in the poll as the only team that was selected by every single analyst to make a Super Bowl in the next five seasons.
In the NFC, the Lions and the 49ers were the top two teams as Detroit and San Francisco were both selected to make a Super Bowl appearance by five of the panelists.
The AFC North was represented by the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals as the two franchises were selected to make an appearance by two of the eight analysts.
Cleveland is openly discussing their ambitions for the upcoming season, and the Browns are hoping for a deep playoff run this season.
The Browns made the playoffs for the second time in four seasons under head coach Kevin Stefanski, and both he and Cleveland GM Andrew Berry received contract extensions this offseason.
Cleveland opens its training camp this week to begin their quest for a third playoff appearance in Stefanski’s fifth season with the team.
