BEREA, Ohio -- One algorithmic/analytics website this past week put the Cleveland Browns' playoff chances at 23 percent, lowest in the AFC North.

NumberFire.com, which ESPN uses for Insider projections for NBA and NFL teams and games, had the Ravens' chances at 59 percent, the Bengals at 56 and the Steelers at 50.

The numbers are not drawn out of thin air. They come from “internal efficiency metrics,” Zach Kempner of NumberFire.com wrote in an email.

“We calculate each team's chances of winning every game throughout their schedule,” Kempner wrote. “Then we simulate the NFL season thousands of times to determine the probability that each team wins the division.”

Numbers and probabilities are updated daily, as soon as each game ends. The site also does Power Rankings based on its algorithms; the Browns are ranked 22nd, behind the 3-8 Washington Redskins and 4-7 Atlanta Falcons.

NumberFire.com is even more optimistic than FiveThirtyEight, which gives the Browns a 16 percent chance at making the playoffs and a seven percent chance at winning the division.

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