Browns vs. Bills 5 bold predictions: Ground game goes wild in Week 11

The Cleveland Browns head to Buffalo to take on the Bills, who have lost two in a row. Here are five bold predictions for the Week 11 contest.

In Week 11, the Cleveland Browns will travel to the east side of Lake Erie to take on the Buffalo Bills. One of the favorites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl, Buffalo is in the midst of a rough patch as they’ve lost their past two games.

Now at 6-3, they aim to get back on track against the Browns who are 3-6 following an embarrassing loss to the Miami Dolphins. After that loss down in the heat of South Beach, the Browns will try and get an upset win in a game that will be played in a blizzard.

Let’s look ahead to their latest challenge with five bold predictions against the Bills.

Browns vs. Bills: 5 bold predictions in Week 11

5. Cleveland’s offensive line gives up four sacks

Not every prediction can be a fun one.

It’s no secret that Cleveland’s offensive line has struggled this season. Week 10 was especially bad as Jacoby Brissett was sacked three times and had to run out of the pocket on several occasions as well.

Unfortunately, things won’t be much better in Week 11. As good as the Dolphins’ defensive line is, the Bills have more firepower. Led by Von Miller, who has eight already, Buffalo has 27 sacks on the year. Most of their damage comes off the edge with Miller, Greg Rousseau (5.0 sacks), A.J. Epenesa (3.5 sacks), and Boogie Basham (2.0 sacks) leading the way.

That’s could spell doom for the Browns with Jedrick Wills struggling and Jack Conklin coming off his worst game of the year. Watch for Buffalo’s edge rushers to have their way with the tackles as they sack Brissett at least four times in this one.

4. Jadeveon Clowney will have a breakout game

If someone were to simply “stat-scout” it would likely lead to a belief that Jadeveon Clowney was better in 2021 than he has been in 2022. That would be due to looking at the numbers alone as he had nine sacks in his first season with the Browns and this year, he has just 1.5 in six games played.

However, Pro Football Focus doesn’t see it this way. In fact, they have Clowney graded nearly six points higher this season than they did a year ago — 72.3 compared to 66.5. His ranking has also increased as he was the 55th highest-rated defensive end according to PFF when he had nine sacks and is 37th now despite the lower numbers.

Of course, Clowney really stands out due to his ability to stop the run. He continually grades high in this area and his work oftentimes goes unnoticed. Where Clowney shines is his ability to set the edge and force the running back to stay inside the tackles.

That should lead to fewer big runs but since the Browns have invested next to nothing in stopping the run, the backs then find huge openings where defensive tackles and linebackers are supposed to be. Even with that being the case, Clowney is doing his job — and he’s doing it very well.

Still, we all want to see pass rushers take out the passer. In that regard, this prediction is that Clowney has his best game getting after the signal-caller as he sacks Josh Allen twice. Buffalo has one of the best rosters in the NFL but one of the few exceptions is right tackle, where Spencer Brown hasn’t been great. That’s where Clowney will find his opening as he plays his best game of the year.

3. Kareem Hunt rushes for two touchdowns

There were rumors at the trade deadline that the Bills could be making a push for Kareem Hunt as Cleveland was fielding calls on the former NFL rushing leader. In the end, Hunt stayed put as Buffalo added Nyheim Hines in a trade with the Colts.

Buffalo could have used Hunt as they look for a push down the stretch. While Hines was a solid addition, he’s far too similar to Devin Singletary, whereas Hunt would have given them a different dimension in the backfield. He’s capable as a receiver much like Singletary and Hines but he can also take over a game as a pure runner as well.

Having said that, Hunt hasn’t been on top of his game over the past month. He has gone for fewer than 10 yards in two of the past three games and 12 or fewer in three of the past four. Even with the 42-yard performance against Cincinnati, Hunt has just 67 yards on 26 carries since Week 6. That’s an average of 2.6 yards per attempt, which is far from the norm for him.

This weekend, look for him to bounce back. Both teams will have to run the ball thanks to the incoming snow storm and that will allow Hunt to get into a rhythm. This prediction is that he turns the extra chances into a two-touchdown performance for Cleveland.

2. Browns D will get two picks

As good as Josh Allen has been this season, he’s had one glaring weakness — a knack for turning the ball over. In nine games played, he has 10 interceptions and has also fumbled the ball eight times.

Last week in their loss to the Minnesota Vikings, Allen really struggled to protect the ball. He had an interception in the end zone on a fourth-down attempt and then threw a pick in overtime as his team was looking to score the winning touchdown.

As if that wasn’t enough, the Vikings were only able to force overtime thanks to a fumble on a handoff right after the defense made a huge stop at the goal line. This fumble was picked up by Minnesota in the end zone, giving them a three-point lead. While Allen did lead his offense down for the tie, his interception in overtime ended their hopes.

The frustrating thing for Allen is that this was the third game in a row — and fourth overall in 2022 — that he had two interceptions in one week. Despite the rough conditions which will lead to more runs than passes, this final prediction is that Allen will still try and force a couple of passes that will find their way to defenders.

Look for Cleveland to come away with two picks, with Martin Emerson grabbing the first of his career.

1. There will be 400 total yards on the ground

As mentioned earlier, this game is expected to be played in a practical blizzard. Forecasters are calling for as much as six feet of snow and that could have quite an impact on the game.

For Cleveland, it could actually be a huge benefit. The frigid weather should lead to the game being fought on the ground, which might be the only thing that can truly neutralize Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs, and Gabe Davis. The only problem is, Allen can still do damage even when he’s not dropping back to pass.

Allen, who is one of the best quarterbacks in the business when it comes to pushing the ball downfield is also a powerful runner. He’s first on the team with 476 yards and four touchdowns on the ground as he averages 7.0 yards per attempt.

With the field potentially blanketed in snow, Buffalo is likely to lean on his legs a bit more. Cleveland will do the same with their ground game — as mentioned when discussing Kareem Hint and his chances to shine in Western New York.

That means Nick Chubb and Hunt will likely get a combined 30-plus rushing attempts and the Bills will probably have a similar number of rushes when all is said and done. This final prediction is that the weather and this dedication to the run leads to a total of at least 400 yards rushing between the two teams.

It might not be a high-scoring affair but it could still be a lot of fun to watch, especially for those who love old-school football.

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