Writer: Joel Cade
Cleveland Browns at Oakland Raiders
Summary: My how things change in a week! Last week the Browns had zero wins in the last 635 days. This week the Browns are facing an Oakland Raiders team that is currently 0-3. The pressure is off the Browns. The pressure is mounting on the Raiders.
In the Art of War, Sun Tzu says that one must always leave their opponent an escape route. If not, they will fight to their death. The Raiders have no escape route. This is their fight to the death game. If they lose to the Browns, there is a good chance the fan base will abandon a team that is already moving anyway. Browns fans feel their pain of losing a team. But not enough to give them a victory.
The Browns come into with a chip on their shoulder. They have played better than their record. Now that Bakermania has hit Cleveland, it is time to prove they are the team that should have won the first two games. The days of being bullied are over.
When these two teams meet, it will be important for the Browns to come out early and squash the Raiders hope. The Raiders are a bad team whose coach is living off former glory. A former coach of mine used to preach kicking teams while they are down. If you give them a reason to believe, then you are in danger of an upset. Yes the Browns are underdogs. But anyone paying attention to the Browns knows they are the better team this week. It is time to play like it.
Kick them when they’re up. Kick them when they’re down.
Final Score: Browns 31, Raiders 21