Coming off of disappointing losses in distraught fashion, the Browns and the Jaguars are each looking to bounce back and avoid a 0-2 start to the season. The Browns already have offensive woes from their 33-17 loss to the Cowboys at home last Sunday. The Jaguars, with too many mistakes, blew a 10-point lead in the second half to the Dolphins, giving them the 20-17 win.
Whoever wins this game will be the team that can produce the most on offense. Both teams already possess solid defensive fronts and solid linebacking units. Each team features impact players from head to toe on defense. All that is left to determine which team will have the offense to find the weak spot first and finish this game attacking that weak spot.
Game Info
Date: Sunday, September 15th
Start Time: 1:00 PM EDT
Location: Jacksonville, Florida
Stadium: EverBank Stadium
Expected Weather: 85 Degrees and cloudy
TV Info: CBS
Betting Information
Point Spread: Jacksonville -3 (-115) | Cleveland +3 (+105)
Moneyline: Jacksonville -165 | Cleveland +140
Over/Under: O 44.5 (-110) | U 41.5 (-110)
Jacksonville Jaguars
Offense
Trevor Lawrence has Gabriel Davis, Christian Kirk, Evan Engram, and first-round pick Brian Thomas Jr. to facilitate the football while also handing it off to Pro Bowler Travis Etienne and newcomer Tanks Bigsby. His offensive line will also be greatly challenged by the Browns' superb line of pass rushers led by the incredible Myles Garrett. Trevor Lawrence was sacked thrice and only threw for 162 yards against the Dolphins.
The Jaguars' usual high-powered offense only generated 267 total yards last Sunday, and their only turnover came late in the third quarter with a 17-7 lead with Travis Etienne getting ready to score his second touchdown of the game, gets stripped by the Dolphins' safety Jevon Holland. The lost fumble led to a Tua to Hill touchdown pass, cutting their lead to three, and the Jaguars failed to convert on third. Short opportunities in the next two drives gave away their victory to the Dolphins. While Travis Etienne couldn't gain much on the ground, Tank Bigsby came in for support by rushing for 73 yards on 12 carries.
Defense
Jacksonville will have to rely heavily on their superstar pass rusher, Josh Hines-Allen, and the rest of the defensive line to get to Deshaun Watson early and often. They also rely on linebackers Foyesade Oluokun and Devyn Llyod to eliminate the run and short-passing opportunities. Their defense sacked Tua Tagovailoa three times and held the NFL's 6th-rated rushing offense from last year to 81 yards rushing on 25 attempts. But when they couldn't get to the passer, they allowed 338 passing yards and a 101.0 passer rating from Tua and Miami's passing attack. The Jaguars' defense allowed over 450 yards of total offense to the Dolphins, with most of those yards going through the air. Their big-time free agent acquisition safety Darnell Savage is ruled out due to injury along with best cornerback Tyson Campbell.
Cleveland Browns
Offense
The Browns didn't do any better on the offensive side of the ball last Sunday. The offense had two interceptions and crossed the 50-yard line no more than five times. They had seven straight scoreless drives after their first 3 points of the game to their first touchdown drive of the game.
This is the week for Ken Dorsey to open up the offense and mix it up. With the Jaguars' defense still playing like the 26th-worst passing defense in the league last season, the Browns' offense will be without Pro Bowl tight end David Njoku this Sunday. But will still have Amari Cooper, Jerry Jeudy, and Elijah Moore to dice up Jacksonville's secondary if they can give Deshaun Watson the time needed. The Browns' still-depleted O-line allowed six sacks and 17 hits on Watson to Dallas last Sunday. Arik Armstead controlling the middle of the line of scrimmage while Hines-Allen and Travon Walker coming off the edge will be the big focus for the offense.
Defense
The Browns enter this game with the better secondary, while the Jaguars come with the better offense. The Browns' secondary, headed by Denzel Ward combined with Greg Newsome III, Martin Emerson, Juan Thornhill, and Grant Delpit, will have a serious challenge with Jacksonville's passing attack. The Browns are coming off a 3-sack game against the Cowboys.
Myles Garrett and company must pressure Trevor Lawrence and remove running lanes from Etienne and Bigsby. Cleveland has the defense to complete those tasks. It has one of the best cornerback trios in the game, capable of shutting down any receiving core, as it held Cowboys' superstar wideout CeeDee Lamb to just 61 yards receiving on 10 targets.
Prediction
If Watson can get enough time to throw to his talented wideouts and tire out Jacksonville's front and linebackers by running the ball a decent number of times. It will open up many opportunities to go long and score a lot, possibly. The Browns' defensive line against the Jaguars' offensive line is the matchup that will dictate where the advantage will be in this game. Can Trevor Lawrence be protected, or will Myles Garrett reign terror in their backfield? But, most importantly, it's the Jaguars defense who will most likely be in trouble. They still can't defend the pass. Deshaun Watson has legitimate targets to throw to and a solid-minded offensive coordinator in Ken Dorsey to adjust the game plan designed to support him. Jack Conklin returned to practice this week, and his possible return should help a lot with the Browns' protection group.
Final Score: Browns 26, Jaguars 20
Main Image via
Comments