The Cleveland Browns have a crucial matchup on Sunday with the Houston Texans, who are 3-5 for the second consecutive year and looking to close out the year on a tear and get to 12-5 once again. They have the artillery to do exactly that, so the Browns can’t take them lightly and need to throw the kitchen sink at them if they intend to avoid dropping to .500.
A Browns loss would make a playoff run in the top-heavy AFC rather unlikely, but there are plenty of reasons for optimism for Browns fans heading into this game. Cleveland has struggled to stop the run this year and the Texans are among the five worst rushing offenses, so they could play right into the Browns’ hands. Quarterback Deshaun Watson is returning after missing last week’s game with a concussion and this will be his second game against his former team after he defeated them in his first start with the Browns back in 2022.
Jay Crawford of Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show isn’t as optimistic about the Browns’ chances on Sunday. During a recent episode, he made a brutal prediction that might upset a few Browns fans.
“I’ve got it 34-13, even though I advocate for them coming out guns blazing, pretend like you’re down a score in the fourth quarter; I don’t think they will. It’s not what they’ve done,” Crawford said.
A 34-13 beating to drop the Browns to .500 would severely alter the course of this season. It would be surprising to see the Browns come out and lay an egg like that even though the Texans are incredibly dangerous. Four of Houston’s five losses have been by one score and it has won three of the last four games heading into this battle.
Cleveland has gotten walloped twice this season against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars, so there is precedent for it, but this is a decent matchup for the Browns. Houston’s defense has taken a step back from last season and the Texans’ strengths on offense play right into Cleveland’s strengths on defense.
Hopefully Crawford is being overly pessimistic and the Browns don’t fall flat on their faces on Sunday. All the hope and momentum will be gone if the Browns fall to 5-5, but if they can get to 6-4 with two easy matchups in their next three games, there will still be an open path to make a playoff push.
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