It took four wins and two trips to first place before the oddsmakers finally got on board with the Cleveland Browns. But even in their first time as a betting favorite this season, they are still given a very slight edge facing the lowly Tennessee Titans in Week 7.
After being an underdog in every game this year and winning four of those contests outright, the Browns are around a 1.5-point favorite on the road against the Titans, who just won their first game of the season and would have the No. 3 overall pick in the 2027 NFL Draft as of right now. So, it is time to examine how this came to be.
ESPN analyst Pamela Maldonado said the Browns have two reasons why they’re favored against the Titans, and both of them have to do with the respective pass defenses.
“Entering the week, the Browns are one of two teams yet to be favored this season, but this matchup supports why that changed. Cleveland plays more man coverage, and Cam Ward struggles against it. Meanwhile, Watson faces a Tennessee defense allowing plenty of completions, giving Cleveland the better chance to move the ball and score enough to win,” Maldonado wrote.
The shift to a heavy man-to-man defense has been the key to the Browns’ defensive turnaround under coordinator Mike Rutenberg. Cleveland’s offense may struggle at times, but Deshaun Watson has found a way to turn it on in the fourth quarter, leading a game-winning drive in each of its victories.
Saying Cleveland’s defense is better than Tennessee’s offense, and the Browns’ offense is better than the Titans’ defense is the most simplistic of explanations. But in this case, it at least takes it one step further than saying that the Browns are just a much better team, which can be seen in the results through six weeks.
Cleveland has three victories over teams with a winning record who are at least tied for first place in their division, defeating the Carolina Panthers and two AFC North rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. Meanwhile, Tennessee’s only victory is against the two-win Indianapolis Colts, and the Titans have lost to three sub-.500 teams: the New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, and Houston Texans.
Despite all of that, ESPN Analytics says that the Browns and Titans each have a 50 percent chance to win this game, so it might turn out to be just as close and challenging as the oddsmakers are projecting.
NEXT: Analyst Has A Confident Message For The Browns This Weekend
