BEREA, Ohio -- It's fitting that the stadium that hosted the Browns' last significant victory is no longer standing.

That victory came on Nov. 23, 2014, a 26-24 victory over the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome that left the Browns squarely in contention for the playoffs.

Josh Gordon returned from a 10-game suspension to register 120 receiving yards. Brian Hoyer overcame three interceptions to set up Billy Cundiff's game-winning field goal. Justin Gilbert -- yes, that Justin Gilbert -- made the key defensive play on a pass breakup on a deep ball to Devin Hester. Left guard Joel Bitonio chased Hester down right before halftime to save a touchdown when he returned a missed field goal.

Cleveland.com photographer Joshua Gunter captured a photo of linebackers Christian Kirksey and Craig Robertson coming off the field, Kirksey with his arms outstretched and Robertson posing, both looking directly into the camera.

"Won on the road, big win, great team, so it was just a lot of excitement that game," Kirksey said. "So that was probably my last feeling of being at the top."

The Browns were 7-4 after all that, technically behind 7-3-1 Cincinnati, but the Browns had beaten the Bengals on the road a few weeks earlier in a Thursday night game and still had one left at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Steelers were 7-4 and on their bye and the Ravens would move to 7-4 the next night.

The point, though, is the Browns were in a real playoff race and it felt like maybe they had stumbled onto something behind Mike Pettine's stereotypical tough-guy coaching style and, more importantly, offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan's playcalling.

"You thought so because you kind of thought you found a quarterback, you found an offensive coordinator, you found the coach," left tackle Joe Thomas said, "so all those things were looking like they were headed in the right direction and obviously things fizzled from there."

Fizzled is putting it nicely. They lost their last five games and, in the 1,130 days since that victory in Atlanta, the Browns have won four games, fired two general managers and a coach and now sit one loss away from becoming the second team in league history to finish 0-16.

The Browns had a veteran team that year. The lineup featured safety Donte Whitner and linebacker Karlos Dansby. Wide receiver Miles Austin caught 47 passes. The offensive line featured Thomas, Alex Mack and John Greco.

"It was pretty cool just because you had a lot of guys that were in double-digit years (in the league)," Kirksey said, "so obviously they knew a lot about the league and were very knowledgeable about the league, so I was able to learn from them. I was new to everything, so I kind of just sat back and watched everybody and just see how you carry yourself as a pro."

That roster, though beneficial that season, likely served as part of the downfall. It became expensive. It was easy to see that certain players overperformed. Eventually the first round of the 2014 draft caught up to everyone. Shanahan left and, while he was replaced by this offseason's head coaching candidate darling John DeFilippo, the rest of the coaching staff's flaws were exposed.

The Browns followed that season with a 3-13 effort in 2015, which featured a seven-game losing streak and ended by losing 11 of 12 games. The last time Bitonio played in a win, in fact, came that year, an overtime victory against Baltimore on Oct. 11. He has been hurt for the two wins since then.

"At that time, of course, I don't think like, 'oh man, we're going to probably lose a bunch of the next 40 games or whatever it's been,'" Bitonio said. "It's been tough."

There aren't many players left from that roster. Besides Bitonio, Kirksey and Thomas, there's Gordon, running back Isaiah Crowell and linebacker Tank Carder, who is out for the season with a torn ACL. Bitonio, Kirksey and Crowell were all rookies.

"I didn't really know better," Bitonio said. "We got to 7-4 and I was like, 'man, this is pretty easy to win in the NFL.'"

Bitonio started from Week 1, while Kirksey and Crowell both played well enough to earn increasing roles throughout the season. Kirksey felt much like Bitonio.

"Just, oh, 'this is the NFL, this is NFL football, this is winning football,'" he said. "So I was pretty excited about how everything went my rookie year. Then I was playing, Joel was playing, so that was something that was exciting."

And then ...

"I thought we were off to a good start (in 2014), thought we were going to build on it the second year," Kirksey said, "but we all know how that year went."

There were some elements of a young core in that group. Kirksey and Bitonio were rare Ray Farmer draft hits and have both since signed new contracts. Other key pieces -- players who were young when they left and remain productive -- have moved on and found success elsewhere.

It started with Mack and right tackle Mitchell Schwartz. Mack played in the Super Bowl a year ago and his Falcons are a win away from a playoff return. Schwartz will make his second consecutive playoff appearance with the Chiefs.

Safety Tashaun Gipson, who had six interceptions in the first 11 games before suffering a season-ending injury in that 2014 Falcons game, left for Jacksonville, who went 3-13. This year, however, he's bound for the playoffs as a member of one of the league's fiercest defenses. Joe Haden, released before the start of the season, will make his playoff debut in a few weeks with Pittsburgh. Robertson is playoff-bound with the Saints.

"I'm proud of my guys that they left and got what they deserve," Kirksey said. "I'm proud of them. Yeah, I had some success with them and had some good memories with them and always wish them the best and definitely motivating for me."

Bitonio, asked specifically about Haden, said he was happy for the former Browns cornerback, but added, "I think you're envious of all the guys. You're like, 'man, they get to keep playing games, they play in meaningful games late in the season.' Since I've been here, we haven't had that quite yet."

If you're worried that Bitonio and Kirksey feel left behind, though, don't. Both see the opportunity in Cleveland, especially after making their commitments to stay.

"When I see them and see how well they're doing, I say, 'Why not us? Why can't we do the same thing?'" Kirksey said. "That's what we're trying to do."

For Bitonio, it's simple: he knows how fans are now and knows it would be a new level if they can start winning.

"If you do it in Cleveland, with these fans and the way the community reacts to the way we play," Bitonio said, "it would be really cool to turn around and make a playoff push here."

In the 19 seasons since their return, the Browns have been in exactly three playoff races. There was the last time they made it in 2002, the 10-win season of 2007 and the unlikely run in 2014. They have never been able to sustain anything. Now, it has been historically bad. Three seasons ago feels like an entirely different era.

No one knew it at the time, of course, but that afternoon in Atlanta has become a point of demarcation. Even if it all felt a little tenuous -- and it turns out it was -- that season was the type of parity-driven run Browns fans needed. It was the type of collapse to which they've become accustomed. But, man, was it fun while it lasted.

"I know that feeling and the feeling that we had," Kirksey said, "and I'm trying to bring that same feeling back."

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