Same old Browns versus Ravens? Not according to oddsmakers
Monday night’s game is expected to be evenly matched.
Many football genius commentators reflexively dismissed the Cleveland Browns after the season opener, after they lost to a dominant Ravens team by 32 points, 38-6. Then the criticism grew louder five weeks later when a banged up Browns team was manhandled by Pittsburgh, losing by 31 points, 38-7.
You see? The Browns always get beat by 30 points whenever they play a good team from the AFC North. By this logic the same thing should happen during the rematch, right?
Oddsmakers don’t quite see it that way for the Browns vs. Ravens rematch this Monday night, however. DraftKings is currently listing the Ravens as a slight -1.5 point favorite as of Wednesday afternoon, with an over-under of 46.5 points.
This writer was enormously impressed with the Ravens Panzer corps of 2019. They led the NFL in rushing yards by a wide margin, led by dual threat quarterback Lamar Jackson, plus running backs Mark Ingram II, Gus Edwards and Justice Hill. They actually gained more yards on the ground than through the air, with an astounding 3,296 yards to 3,225.
How did they do it? They supported their skill position players with a monstrously tough offensive line led by Ronnie Stanley the offensive tackle from Notre Dame, and Marshal Yanda, a guard from the Iowa Hawkeyes. Yanda was drafted in the same year (2007) as Joe Thomas, and will probably join Thomas in the Hall of Fame someday.
They were joined by center Matt Skura, guard Bradley Bozeman, and tackle Orlando Brown, Jr. Yes, that would be the son of Orlando “Zeus” Brown, who starred for both the Ravens and the Browns back in the day, and who was almost blinded by a referee throwing a lead-weighted penalty flag in his eye. This was not just an incredible offensive line, this was like lining up J’onn J’onzz, Ben Grimm, Thor Odinson, Bruce Banner, and Billy Baxter upfront. To make matters even more challenging, they added a huge fullback in the person of Patrick Ricard, all 6-foot-3 and 311 lbs of him, who only made the Pro Bowl last season.
That was really the guts of the team. You may criticize Lamar Jackson for not being a premier passer, but you would be ignoring the fact that he led the NFL with 36 passing TDs, and added an additional seven TDs on the ground just to show off. If that does not convince you, what exactly do you want him to do?
He did not have sensational wide receiving help, by the way. Tight ends Mark Andrews and Hayden Hurst were the main receiving threats, with wideouts Willie Snead and Marquise Brown mainly keeping opposing defenses honest.
What has changed since then? The changes on offense are the most noticeable. Let’s take a look at those changes and then turn out attention to their defense.