CLEVELAND -- As Browns safety Grant Delpit baited Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love on a critical third-down play late in Cleveland's come-from-behind win on Sunday, breaking off his receiver to intercept Love's pass, the long-awaited takeaway felt like the final piece of the puzzle for Cleveland's defense.
For much of the young NFL season, the unit had carried a heavy burden for a struggling offense, stifling some of the league's most bruising runners and befuddling its brightest passers.
But holding the league's best offenses to minimal yards and points wasn't enough.
Taking the ball was the next step for the defense.
It all came together for the Browns defense in Cleveland's 13-10 win against the Packers, with another standout performance that established the unit as one of the league's best through three games.
"They made it a challenge, and that's a good defense," Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. "They have good personnel; they play extremely hard. You talk about just all the little things that are cornerstones of a great defensive football team and obviously you have to have talent; you have to have sound scheme, and you have to have relentless effort to the football. I think they have all that."
Two years after fielding arguably the league's best defense in the 2023 season -- that unit allowed the fewest yards in the NFL (270.2 total per game) -- Cleveland's 2025 iteration is off to a similar pace.
The Browns' defense ranks second in total yards, allowing 204.3 yards per game. Their run defense has been the league's stingiest, allowing 57.3 yards per game. Their 11 sacks are third most in the league (behind the Broncos and the Rams) and nine different players have registered at least a half sack, tied with the Atlanta Falcons for the most in the NFL.
Over the years, Cleveland has built its defense from the inside out, compiling a bevy of talented linemen who can anchor the unit. Before the season, defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said that this year's group might be the best defensive line he has coached during his three seasons in Cleveland, and their play has backed his prognostications. The Browns lead the league in both pass rush win rate and run stop win rate.
Similar faces remain from the 2023 defense that shepherded the franchise's third playoff appearance since returning to Cleveland in 1999. Perennial Pro Bowlers Denzel Ward and Myles Garrett, the latter of whom is tied for second in the NFL with four sacks, are still in place. As is Schwartz, the architect of the aggressive, man-heavy scheme.
Plenty of newcomers, though, are starring in their roles.
Rookie linebacker Carson Schwesinger has been a Day 1 starter since the Browns drafted him No. 33 in this year's draft. Schwesinger, who relays the defensive playcalls, is tied for first with Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr. among all rookies with 21 tackles.
Fellow rookie Mason Graham, the No. 5 overall pick, had his best game as a pro on Sunday. He registered a pass rush win rate of 43%, almost five times the average for a defensive tackle. Right next to him, the free agent signing of defensive tackle Maliek Collins has been a hit. Collins ranks 13th in pass rush win rate among defensive tackles, while Graham ranks eighth. And third-year defensive end Isaiah McGuire, who only appeared in four games in 2023, leads the NFL in pass rush win rate.
The deep defensive front has taken advantage of the extra attention Garrett faces each week. Garrett has been double-teamed at the 11th-highest rate among edge rushers.
"This is how it's supposed to look; it just came together," Browns defensive lineman Shelby Harris said. "This is our style of football, our brand of football. Attack. Get up there and making things a living hell for the offense. And that's what we did [Sunday] and what we need to do every week. If we want to play winning football every week, this is what it needs to look like, and this is what our D-line is capable of."
The degree of difficulty has only made the efforts from the defense more impressive. In the second half of the Browns' 17-16 loss to the Bengals in Week 1, Cleveland held quarterback Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati offense to 7 yards in the second half. The Browns were routed 41-17 by the Ravens in Week 2 after a strong first-half performance, but Cleveland limited Baltimore running back Derrick Henry to 23 rushing yards. And on Sunday, Cleveland sacked Love a career-high five times and held running back Josh Jacobs to 30 rushing yards, his fewest since Week 2 of the 2023 season.
The next step for the defense, though, was taking the ball away. Delpit's interception was the unit's first since Week 16 of the 2024 season, and the defense nearly got another one before Harris' blocked field goal, when the ball was jarred loose from Jacobs but there was no clear and obvious video evidence that Cleveland recovered the ball.
"Grant got that first one for us, and I think they'll start coming in bunches," cornerback Greg Newsome II said. "I think the football gods are on our side right now."
The extent of the defense's efforts will be tested if an offense that hasn't eclipsed 17 points this season can't gain its footing soon. Last year's unit had similar showings at times but wasn't able to overcome the league's lowest-scoring offense. And their next test features another high-powered opponent when they face the Detroit Lions Sunday on the road (1 p.m. ET, Fox).
"I think our defense is playing at a high level," Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. "And what I love about our defense is how we play as much as what we do and, you know, the schemes we play. Just watch us play, watch our guys come off the ball, watch them run the ball, watch them celebrate with each other. That's an infectious group over there."