5 Bold predictions for Cleveland Browns in Week 2 vs. Bengals

1. Browns run for 250 yards

Leading up to this season, all we heard was how much Kevin Stefanski was going to run the ball. With his resumé, this was completely understandable as Stefanski took over the Minnesota Vikings offense late in the 2018 season and they went from a pass-happy team under John DeFilippo to one that pounded the rock — and did so successfully.

In Cleveland, it was expected that he would do the same and while Dalvin Cook is an elite running back, the Browns have the potential to be even better in this regard since they have both Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt at their disposal.

Unfortunately, Week 1 wasn’t the best example of what this ground game can be. While both Chubb (10 rushed for 60 yards) and Hunt (13 rushes for 72) were solid, neither were given enough chances to make a huge difference. One reason was the deficit as the Ravens took control of the game late in the first half, but another reason was the playcalling.

Stefanski got away from the ground game too early as he was guilty of forcing the ball to Odell Beckham, Jr. After seeing how poorly that went, look for them to simplify things in the short week and focus on the ground game more than ever.

With that being the case, expect big things from the Browns with each running back topping the 100-yard mark en route to 250 total yards on the ground.

It may sound crazy but this is what this team is built to do. And with this being a short week, it makes too much sense to do anything except pound the rock with No. 24 and 27.