5 reasons the Browns will beat the Giants on Sunday Night Football.
The Browns take their second crack at getting win No. 10 this season in a matchup against the Giants on before a nationally televised audience on Sunday Night Football.
The Week 15 contest was flexed into the primetime spot and the original game that had the Cowboys hosting the 49ers were bumped. Dallas has been unwatchable since losing Dak Prescott, while the 49ers have carried the hangover of losing the Super Bowl around all season.
The Browns, on the other hand, just played in the most exciting games of the 2020 season and are on the cusp of the playoffs for the first time since 2002. It’s a big story around the league and the NFL’s decision to elevate this game is proof of it.
Despite a 5-8 mark, the Giants bring intrigue into the game, as well. New York finds itself a game out of first place in the unspectacular NFC East with three games left to play.
Cleveland enters the contest holding the No. 5 spot in the AFC Playoffs, a seed they’ve held onto even after losing to the Ravens in Week 14. However, Cleveland can’t afford any more losses, because the field behind the Browns is muddled with contenders.
The Colts, at 9-4, are right on the Titans heels, while the Ravens improved their chances by beating Cleveland moving to 8-5. Baltimore is still on the outside looking in, though, as Miami (8-5) currently holds the final Wild Card Berth.
Kevin Stefanski didn’t waste any time in looking ahead to Cleveland’s matchup against New York, as the first year coach was already talking about this game in the second sentence of his Ravens’ postgame presser.
The Browns need a victory to get back on the right track, and the Giants matchup should remedy the letdown we’re all feeling after the loss to Baltimore. Here’s Five reasons the Browns will get it done.
1. More exciting, vanilla envelope or the Giants?
The New York Giants are about as exciting to watch as CSPAN. Daniel Jones hasn’t figured it out in year two and there’s a question as to whether he’ll play against Cleveland.
He was already battling injuries before last week and his health took a turn for the worse with the news that he sprained his ankle.
If the Browns don’t go with Jones, they’ll go with former Brown Colt McCoy.
Credit to McCoy for not being swallowed by up the Browns QB machine. So many quarterbacks passed through town and then were out of the league within a year or two. McCoy has carved a nice career out as a backup capable of stepping up for a spot start.
He was under center for the Giants 17-12 upset of Seattle two weeks back, and Judge is rightfully being second guessed for going back to Jones last Sunday. The Seattle win unexpectedly put the Giants into the NFC East playoff picture.
Elsewhere, the Giants haven without Saquon Bakrley, who suffered a season ending injury in Week 1.
Their offense ranks 31st in the NFL (14th rushing, 30th passing).
2. No state secrets Freddie can provide
Freddie Kitchens is on Joe Judge’s staff, working as the tight ends coach.
So, is there any edge the Giants can claim having Cleveland’s 2019 leader on its sideline?
It was laughable to type. I’m one who advocated for hiring Kitchens and I’ll be the first to admit I was wrong. And if there were state secrets involving the 2019 Cleveland Browns, someone should’ve clued Freddie in while he was employed by the Browns.
The Kitchens storyline will surely be mentioned on the broadcast, but I’m not sure it will get that much run.
Kevin Stefanski is running a completely different system and is maximizing a roster very similar to what Kitchens had last season.
If anything, maybe Kitchens can explain how Higgins–a player deserving of a contract extension after a career rejuvenation–became a nobody playing under Kitchens offensive “genius.”
Fortunately, the Browns were able to right ship in hiring Stefanski, who has now become the envy of teams still searching for a coach. Think the Cowboys regret rushing to land Mike McCarthy?
There’s no advantage the Giants will be able to takeaway, other than what the Browns have already put on tape.
3. No OBJ, No problem
When the schedule was first released, this game was garnering attention because it was supposed to be Odell Beckham’s first trip back to New York to play his former team.
Beckham’s been out since tearing his ACL against the Bengals, and as of late, his presence hasn’t been missed with the emergence of other receivers.
It was hard to gauge the Browns’ passing game as November, as Cleveland seemingly played in crazy weather that didn’t endear itself to the vertical pass.
But lately, Cleveland’s been able to throw and Baker Mayfield looks as good as ever. Rashard Higgins has 12 receptions in last two games, good for 163 yards and two touchdowns.
Rookie Donovan Peoples Jones has also been more noticeable with his newfound playing time. He made the game-winning catch against the Bengals as his playing time increased following Beckham’s injury. He added a 75-yard touchdown against the Titans and he had three catches for 74 yards–one of which went for a big first down–against Baltimore.
Jarvis Landry is reliable as ever, catching 22 of his last 30 targets over the course of the past three weeks with two scores. He’s a threat as a passer and remains to be the Browns’ most dependable wideout.
This isn’t meant to slam Beckham because his ability to hit a home run each time he catches the ball makes him a great player. That said, “Baker Theory” is being tested and it’s hard to argue with the results. Mayfield’s spreading the ball around, hitting six or seven receivers per game and looks as comfortable as ever as Cleveland’s field general.
4. Big game for Browns D-Line
No matter whom is playing quarterback for the Giants Sunday, they’re going to come under fire often.
In fact, this contest is shaping up to be a huge contest for the Browns’ defensive line, in terms of putting pressure on the quarterback. Jones didn’t exactly help his line last week, as he took a loss of 52 yards on sack! He also fumbled three times. He took a total of six sacks against the Cardinals.
Shane Lemieux and Andrew Thomas allowed five pressures in that contest. It’s been a relatively disappointing for Thomas, who was the fourth pick in last spring’s draft. He’s allowed eight sacks, which is tied for first in the NFL. Jedrick Wills, who went 10th, has only allowed four sacks.
The Giants will have their hands full on Sunday with Myles Garrett chasing Cleveland’s single-season sack record. Garrett is sitting at 10.5 with three games to play. The record is 14.5, which was set by Reggie Camp in 1984.
Olivier Vernon is also really coming on of late with seven sacks since Nov. 1.
5. Who stops Chubb and Hunt?
The Giants even being in contention at this point is a credit to the their defense, which has played well recently.
Corner James Bradberry is having a nice season, as are linebacker Blake Martinez and free safety Logan Ryan. Heck, even Jabrill Pepers has found a role playing closer to the line of scrimmage as a strong safety.
The Giants are ninth in the NFL in scoring, allowing 22.4 points per game. They’re going to have to be that sharp to stop the Browns, but it’s hard to see New York totally shutting down Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt.
Chubb recently put himself into some rarified air as one of only two players to rush for 3,000 yards and 5+ touchdowns in their first three seasons. The other? Jim Brown.
Hunt’s also been remarkable, surprisingly scoring that TD on a wheel route that resulted in a score with over a minute remaining against the Ravens, something Stefanski admitted he didn’t expect would happen.
The Browns bread and butter remains running the ball, setting up Mayfield in play action and then adding chunks of yards when the defense sells out stopping the run. There’s no reason this formula won’t continue to work against the Giants.