Not that the Baltimore Ravens or Cleveland Browns need any motivation in this matchup, but the winner of this game will do no worse than a tie atop an ultra-tight AFC North Division. We’ll give you the odds and make a prediction for Sunday’s battle.
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Ravens vs. Browns Betting Lines, Start Time, and More
All odds from DraftKings Sportsbook.
- Spread: Browns -2.5
- Moneyline: Ravens (+124); Browns (-148)
- Over/Under: 41
- Game time: 1 p.m. ET
- Location: Cleveland Browns Stadium
- Channel: CBS
Ravens vs. Browns Prediction
Injuries have been arguably the biggest storyline for each team’s season so far. The Ravens, who entered this season with legitimate Super Bowl expectations, have been hit hard by the injury bug. In last Sunday’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore was without seven starters due to injury.
Then there are the Browns, who lost their best offensive player — running back Nick Chubb — to a gruesome knee injury in Week 2 vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers. The impact of that blow was already felt when Cleveland managed only 78 rushing yards against the Tennessee Titans.
However, that didn’t matter to Cleveland at the end of the day because it has the league’s best defense. That unit limited the Titans to just a single field goal. It’s already the second time in three games that the Browns have held an opponent to a mere three points.
The most yards Cleveland’s defense has allowed in a game so far is 255, against the Steelers. The Browns have allowed 21 first downs … for the season! Against the pass, they are holding opponents to 4.7 yards per attempt, the lowest in the league. Against the run, they are allowing just 2.8 yards per carry, second lowest in the league.
Simply put, they’ve been dominant.
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So what is a guy like Lamar Jackson, with a banged-up supporting cast, supposed to do against this defense? Continuing to perform like an MVP candidate is certainly a good option.
With his arm, Jackson is completing 73% of his pass attempts (2nd in NFL). On the ground, he is leading the Ravens in both rushing yards (193) and yards per carry (6.0).
And Baltimore’s defense has hardly been a liability either. The Ravens held their first two opponents under 300 total yards, and even in their loss to the Colts last week, Indianapolis managed just 327 total yards.
Cleveland QB Deshaun Watson has been getting better each week, and last Sunday he had his highest passer rating in a game (123.4) since he joined the Browns.
This figures to be a tight battle all the way (hence the low point spread). While it’s difficult to see a lot of offensive fireworks in the works, I think Cleveland’s defense is on the verge of a special season, and that will be enough to get the Browns over the hump in this contest.
Take the home team in this one.
Best Bet: Browns -2.5 (-115 at DraftKings SportsBook)