Of course, the 6-3 Browns are without their $230 million man for the rest of the 2023-24 campaign due to a shoulder injury ... which means they'll try to keep their hopes alive with DTR under center.

The former UCLA signal-caller saw the field in Week 4 against the Ravens ... and it wasn't great -- he threw for only 121 yards, tossed three interceptions and was sacked four times.

With that being said, Cribbs is somewhat cautious going into Sunday's game against the Steelers ... saying he may not be too high on DTR yet, but he has faith in the team as a whole.

"I rely on action, on stats -- as of now I don't have confidence into DTR until he goes out there and proves it," Cribbs says. "He has a great opportunity to redeem himself in the eyes of his fanbase and the eyes of his teammates."

"His teammates are charged to believe in him wholeheartedly and go out there and win, but the fans are not," he adds. "So, I have faith in the Browns team that they can get the job done."

"So, if we can put it all off of DTR's hands, to say I don't just believe in DTR. I believe in the team because it's gonna take more than DTR. Even if he just simply hands the ball off every single play, it's gonna be up to the team to dictate how this game goes, as well as Coach Kevin Stefanski."

Cribbs commends the Browns and Stefanski for coming up with new ways to get the job done despite dealing with numerous injuries this season -- including Nick Chubb and Jack Conklin to name a few -- and he's not ready to draw the curtains on their Super Bowl chances ... even making a Jurassic Park reference to get his point across.

As for the players, Cribbs tells us he's got a good pulse on how the vibes are in the locker room ... saying he spoke with cornerback Greg Newsome II recently, and he explained how the guys are able to stay level-headed no matter what happens on the field.

There's more -- Cribbs also spoke highly of Watson ... praising the former Pro Bowler for putting his "heart and soul" into the team before the injury.