Another week for the Cleveland Browns and another starting quarterback as they turn to former Baltimore Ravens and Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. It’s still weird to say that after all the years of seeing Flacco twice a year as an opponent to have him starting in Cleveland is just different as he gets set to take on the Los Angeles Rams.
Cleveland has been a different team on the road this year than at home and they could desperately use a win to gain some confidence down the stretch as they look to make the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how Kevin Stefanski adjusts his offense to a different quarterback but we will likely see an offense similar to when Baker Mayfield and Jacoby Brissett were starting.
There is a path for the Browns to win on Sunday and as it has all year it will start with their defense. Myles Garrett will play through his injury and with Matthew Stafford under center, they will need to pressure him early and often to get the win.
Myles Garrett and Za'Darius Smith will combine for four sacks
Myles Garrett is banged up with the shoulder injury he sustained last week but he was a full go at practice on Friday so we will see but it seems like he is good to go. It was a down week in terms of pass rush production last week but with Matthew Stafford and an average offensive line, they should be able to bounce back this week.
There isn’t a major glaring hole on their offensive line but I think this is a game that Garrett and Za’Darius Smith want to send a message in. They had a game where some kind of question if they were as good as they were hyped up to be and I think they will be hungry and looking to dominate on Sunday.
Elijah Moore and Joe Flacco will connect for a 40+ yard touchdown
Joe Flacco was one of the few quarterbacks in New York that actually threw the ball to Elijah Moore and he likely will lean on that past relationship in his first game as the Browns quarterback. They didn’t exactly light it up together last year but having that chemistry will matter and Flacco is a creature of habit.
Flacco still has one of the biggest arms in the NFL and he is known to take his deep shots the biggest deep threat on the roster right now is Moore. I can see Flacco and Stefanski taking some early deep shots to try and loosen up to the defense and keep them from stacking the box against the run or sitting on the short underneath routes.
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah will have at least five tackles for loss
The season that Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is having right now has been a lot of fun to watch and is kind of overshadowed by the defensive line. Last week against the Broncos he was all over the field he made major plays in run support, as a blitzer, and in coverage where he was locking players down.
Kyren Williams is playing great for the Rams and they have got to limit his impact if Cleveland is going to win. Owusu-Koramoah will be all over the field and you see his comfort and confidence in this system grow week after week and it’ll continue this Sunday.
