Editor's note: Tony Grossi covers the Cleveland Browns for ESPN 850 WKNR.

Takeaways from a weekend of Browns scoreboard-watching …

1. Playoffs on life support: Well, that was fun while it lasted.

Which was less than 24 hours.

The Browns’ gutty 17-16 win in Denver on Saturday night intensified hopes that maybe the stars were aligning for a miraculous hook and ladder-like script to the sixth AFC playoff seed, or even the AFC North division title.

But on Sunday, most every game of interest in the Browns’ attempted miracle went against them. The Colts (8-6) beat the Cowboys. The Titans (8-6) beat the Giants. And the backbreaker was the Steelers (8-5-1) beat the Patriots.

Game, set, and … but, wait.

Yes, there is an infinitesimal chance the Browns can win a three-way tie with Indianapolis and Tennessee for the sixth AFC playoff seed. But it would take favorable outcomes in nine games over the next two weekends, the most infeasible being a preposterous tie between the Colts and Titans in Game 16.

Unfortunately, Tony Dungy and Jeff Fisher aren’t coaching them anymore. (Google: 2007 NFL season finale.) So good luck with that.

Nevertheless, the season is neither over nor lost for the Browns.

Victories over division rivals Cincinnati and Baltimore in the final two games would have multiple lasting benefits.

Beating the Bengals and Ravens in the final two games would:

a. Complete a sweep of the Bengals and inflict another loss on the personal record of Marvin Lewis special assistant Hue Jackson, author of that historic 3-36-1 record in his 2 ½ seasons as Browns coach.

b. Complete a sweep of the Ravens and possibly knock them out of the playoffs in what may be the final game of the Ozzie Newsome-John Harbaugh-Joe Flacco era in Baltimore.

c. Complete a 4-1-1 record in AFC North games, their best since the division was formed in the 2002 league realignment.

d. Complete an overall record of 8-7-1, marking the Browns’ first above-.500 season since 10-6 in 2007.

e. Complete their first undefeated month of December since the 1986 season.

Accomplishing those objectives would go a long way toward eradicating the losing culture that has adhered to the Browns like Krazy Glue for 11 years and would set up the 2019 season as one of legitimate high expectations – no matter who the coach is.

2. About that coaching search: If the Browns do run the table, it means Gregg Williams would take a glittering resume into his job interview with a first line that reads:

Extinguished another potential Haslam dumpster fire and lifted the franchise’s self-esteem with a 6-2 record in eight games as interim coach.

The Browns’ undeniable coalescing as a team under Williams’ direction has not deterred General Manager John Dorsey one second from doing his due diligence in researching and presenting a list of interview candidates for head coach to the Haslams. Word is that Dorsey has logged a lot of travel miles vetting candidates already, and he is not done.

But there is no getting around the fact that Williams is making a strong pitch for the full-time job. More are believing that when all is said and done, Williams could wind up as the frontrunner with the Haslams for the job.

If that comes to pass, whomever Dorsey brings to the job interviews would have a steep, uphill climb to earn the nod of the Haslams. And make no mistake, team owners in the NFL are the ones with the final call on the head coach.

3. Simply, why?: The Browns’ resurgence under Williams continues to throw shade on the decision of the Haslams to bring back Jackson as coach for a third year after historically bad seasons of 1-15 and 0-16.

In my opinion, the Haslams brought back Jackson because they still were traumatized by national criticism over previous knee-jerk coach firings, and they felt guilty for saddling Jackson with a player personnel department for two drafts that was unqualified to compete with those of Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cincinnati.

“I think we will see the real Hue Jackson,” Jimmy Haslam said on July 29. “He has good quarterbacks, he has some skill players, he has veteran offensive line – now, we have to figure out left tackle – and three really good backs and a good defense.

“I think you have heard me say this several times: you have to give Hue credit for bringing in [offensive coordinator] Todd Haley, which I think will allow Hue to be the head coach.

“I think this will be the first opportunity Hue will have to do what we know he can do as head coach and as a leader.”

As things turned out, the decision to bring back Jackson set the organization back eight games and arguably cost them a more serious playoff run in 2018.

We’ll never know for sure what would have transpired if the season had begun with Jackson not in charge. But I think that everyone can agree that these last two games would have meant a whole lot more than they even do now.