CLEVELAND — One of the hottest teams in football, the Baltimore Ravens, will travel to Cleveland in Week 8 to take on the struggling 1-6 Browns at Huntington Bank Field.
However, this week, Cleveland's offense will look different as Jameis Winston will make his first start at quarterback as a member of the Browns.
Below is everything you need to know about the Browns' Week 8 contest:
Game info, how to watch on TV, betting line
- Date: Sunday, Oct. 27
- Time: 1 p.m.
- Location: Huntington Bank Field, Cleveland, Ohio
- TV channel: CBS
- Radio: ESPN 850, 92.3 The Fan, 98.5 WNCX
- Betting line: -9 Ravens / +9 Browns
- Over-under point total: 44.5
- Buy tickets HERE
Preview
So far, the Browns have struggled throughout the season, posting a 1-6 record coming into Sunday. Now, they are set to turn to a new quarterback this week in Winston.
The 30-year-old veteran is getting the start after Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in the team's Week 7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Cleveland's offense desperately needs a spark from Winston against their AFC North rival. The Browns offense has been feeble this season, averaging a league-worst 253.9 yards per game and ranking 29th with 15.6 points per contest.
In addition to the quarterback change, Browns Head Coach Kevin Stefanski announced that he is turning over play-calling to the team's offensive coordinator, Ken Dorsey. This week will mark the first time since Stefanski's 2020 arrival in Cleveland that someone else will be calling the plays.
Winston and the Browns' offense should be able to capitalize on Baltimore's weak passing defense. The Ravens' secondary is surrendering the most passing yards in the NFL to its opponents, averaging 287.1 per game.
Winston must take advantage of this and look for targets, including David Njoku, Cedric Tillman and Jerry Jeudy, early and often. The Browns offensive line will also look to keep Winston upright, having surrendered a league-high 35 sacks through seven games.
Conversely, the Ravens come into Cleveland boasting the best offense in the NFL, averaging 461.4 yards per game and 31.1 points.
Baltimore possesses the best running back in the NFL, Derrick Henry, who currently leads the league in rushing yards with 873 and rushing touchdowns with eight. It is worth noting that Henry comes into Cleveland with more rushing yards than the whole Browns team has had this season (660 yards).
While the Ravens have been highly aggressive on the ground, the Browns defense has only allowed 126 rushing yards per game. To stay in this game, the Browns' defense must shut down Henry and the running threat of quarterback Lamar Jackson.
Jackson is coming off a strong performance in Baltimore's 41-31 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he threw for 281 yards and five touchdowns.
