New Orleans marches in for a Saturday game against the Cleveland Browns.
The Saints won just their 5th game last week, but still have a viable shot at the NFC South division title.
Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are collapsing, and hold the top position with just 6 wins.
And with the Saints, Atlanta Falcons, and Carolina Panthers knotted at 5-9, it’s anybody’s title to win.
Cleveland’s playoff chances up to 0.7%, according to ESPN FPI #Browns
— Jake Trotter (@Jake_Trotter) December 19, 2022
Cleveland’s own playoff hopes are alive, although they are on total life support.
The Browns need 5 teams to not only lose but to lose exactly the right games in order to sneak into the 7th position.
ESPN estimated the odds of such a scenario playing out at 0.7 percent.
Here are 2 other storylines to follow in the Browns-Buccaneers game.
Welcome Home, Jarvis Landry
Jarvis Landry landed with his hometown Saints after turning down the Browns’ best reworked-contract offer.
And it was a great homecoming, at least for one week.
Landry opened the season with 7 catches on 9 targets for 114 yards against the Falcons.
But he only grabbed 8 more catches for 54 yards over the next 3 games before an ankle injury sidelined him.
WELCOME BACK TO THE ENDZONE MR. JARVIS LANDRY 👏
Anytime TD ✅💰 (+260)
pic.twitter.com/ZRNm770WC8— PFF NFL Podcast (@PFFNFLPod) November 20, 2022
The former Brown and Dolphin missed 6 weeks and returned to find a new quarterback under center.
With Andy Dalton at the helm, Landry has only 10 catches in 5 games and was shut out on 1 target Sunday.
There are Browns fans who would like to cheer for Landry after a few catches this weekend.
Just as long as he doesn’t jeopardize Cleveland’s dwindling playoff odds.
Thanks, Canada! Cold, Wind, and Snow
Below-freezing temperatures and snow are expected across much of the United States this weekend.
But few cities do cold and snow like Cleveland does.
And throw in winds off the lake at an expected 30 miles per hour, and you have a true Snow Globe Game.
The Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints game in Week 16 has an Over/Under of 32.5 points.
— Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL) December 19, 2022
Dalton and his Saints are not only a fair-weather southern team, but they also play and practice in a dome.
One would think this would be a huge advantage for the Cleveland Browns, except for this one thing:
Deshaun Watson, who did well enough in moderate cold last week, has not proven capable in bad weather yet.
And Dalton’s Cincy experience might even the odds if anybody can even see the game.
NEXT: PFF Reveals It's Highest Graded Browns From Saturday's Game
