The Cleveland Browns had that familiar feeling of losing again last Sunday, as they fell to the Oakland Raiders in a gut-wrenching loss on the road. The Browns, like they always do, will look to bounce back this coming Sunday against the rolling Baltimore Ravens, who have their eyes on a third win in a row. Will the Browns get their second win of the season? Or will the Ravens keep on winning?
The Ravens are getting into a groove that’s making their fans giddy with excitement and expectations and their future opponents worry. The Ravens got their second win a row last Sunday by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers, 26-14, and the manner with which they eked out that victory was telling of how good Baltimore is, especially its defense. The Ravens held Pittsburgh down to only 284 total yards. The Steelers’ backfield coughed up only 19 rushing yards on 11 carries. That kind of rushing defense will come very handy for the Ravens this coming Sunday against Cleveland, which boasts of a running back tandem of Carlos Hyde and rookie Nick Chubb and a second-ranked rushing offense. The Ravens are fifth in the league against the run with only 82.5 rushing yards allowed per game. On offense, Joe Flacco went 28 of 42 for 363 passing yards and touchdowns against Pittsburgh, while kicker John Tucker drilled all four of his field goal attempts. Tucker is a nice weapon for Baltimore against the Browns’ defense that can be stingy at times.
Baltimore is 4-1 ATS in its last five road games.
Betting on the Cleveland Browns (1-2-1)
Infamous for their nonstop discovery of ways of letting their fanbase down, the Browns did it again on Sunday, as they blew a 14-point lead in a 45-42 overtime loss to the Oakland Raiders. Nevertheless, it was still encouraging for them to see rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield make things happen on the field. Mayfield passed for 295 passing yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions on 21-of-41 completions. Mayfield also lost two fumbles, but for all his errors, he still looked like the unquestioned quarterback of Cleveland, which has a top 10 offense that averages 25.5 points per game. One positive takeaway for the Browns from the loss to Oakland was the performance of rookie running back Nick Chubb. The former Georgia Bulldogs star only had three carries but took the ball to the house twice and finished the game with 105 rushing yards. The Ravens have a tough run defense, but the Browns seemingly have a two-headed monster in the backfield in Hyde and Chubb that can also take away the focus away from wide receiver Jarvis Landry. Landry only had 34 receiving yards with a touchdown on 10 targets against Oakland.
Cleveland is 4-1 ATS in its last five meetings with the Ravens.
