When a panel of analysts agrees on a game, it usually means the matchup looks lopsided on paper. The problem is that the NFL has a way of making those consensus picks look foolish. The Browns proved that last week, and one analyst believes they are about to do it again.
Ian Hanford was the only member of Bleacher Report’s 7-person panel to pick Cleveland against the Carolina Panthers, taking the Browns as 2.5-point underdogs at home.
“It feels strange backing the Browns to cover a tight spread, but Cleveland’s defense was solid against Tampa Bay, and I think the Panthers’ attack has to come back to Earth at some point, as they’ve scored at least 34 points in each of their first two games. The Browns will look to turn this one into an uglier, lower-scoring affair, and I think they make it happen. Cleveland pulls the upset, and we finally get a Jared Verse sighting,” Hanford wrote.
The betting line tells its own story. Oddsmakers have the Panthers favored on the road even though they are playing their 2nd straight game away from home, which says a lot about how the market still views the Browns after a 34-10 loss in Jacksonville to open the year.
Carolina’s offense is the biggest reason for that. Bryce Young and the Panthers have scored at least 34 points in both games and are averaging more than 400 yards, and the rest of the panel pointed to a Browns defense that sits in the bottom half of the league.
Hanford’s case rests on what Mike Rutenberg’s unit showed in Tampa Bay. After giving up 34 points in the opener, the defense held the Buccaneers to 19 and closed the game out following the late weather delay.
Turning Sunday into a grind will require more from the offense than Deshaun Watson’s arm. The running game struggled last week, and controlling the clock is the easiest way to keep a hot offense on the sideline.
The Verse comment prediction is the most important part of the pick. The centerpiece of the Myles Garrett trade has been quiet through 2 games. Getting consistent pressure on Young is the clearest path to slowing Carolina down.
If Hanford is right, Cleveland would move to 2-1 and prove the experts wrong for a 2nd straight week. At some point, that stops looking like a fluke.
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