Slumping Panthers Hit The Road To Face Cleveland Browns

The pointspread on this game might give some cause for a double take at first glance but we’re of the opinion that it makes perfect sense. It’s difficult to remember the last time that the Cleveland Browns were priced as a ‘PK’ against an opponent of this class but at this late juncture of the season these are teams heading in different directions.

Carolina could be a franchise at a crossroads. They’re still a decent team when they’re healthy and playing well but that really hasn’t been the case this season. They’re definitely not on the upswing and have been in a state of regression ever since their dominant 2015 campaign. That year the Panthers won their first 14 games en route to a 15-1 mark which tied the record for the best regular season performance in NFC history. They advanced to the Super Bowl that year losing 24-10 to the Denver Broncos and they’ve not come anywhere near this level since. In 2016, they regressed badly with a 6-10 record and a last place finish in the NFC South. It was the first time since 2012 that they had missed the postseason but since it’s not uncommon for Super Bowl entrants to have a tough road the following season the hope for the future remained.

The situation showed marginal improvement in 2017 when Carolina went 11-5 and earned a wild card berth into the postseason. Any optimism generated by the Panthers’ trip to the playoffs quickly dissipated as they lost to the New Orleans Saints in the Wild Card Round. The 2018 NFL regular season began well for Carolina as they hit mid-season with a record of 6-2 following an impressive 42-28 home win over Tampa Bay. It’s been downhill ever since. They had to travel to Pittsburgh off a short practice week to face the Steelers on Thursday, November 8 and were embarrassed 52-21. The team didn’t play badly in three subsequent losses by 1 at Detroit, 3 at home against Seattle and 7 at Tampa Bay but the sum total is that Carolina is now 6-6 and in the midst of a four game losing streak.

Cleveland is destined for another losing season but despite a 4-7-1 record they’re very optimistic for the future. Rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield looks more like a superstar every time he takes the field. He rebounded from a rough first half against Houston last week to put up 351 yards in the second half. It was the most by a NFL quarterback in a non-overtime game since 2012 and the third most by any quarterback in a half since 1991. Carolina head coach Ron Rivera observed this week that he sees a lot of Chicago Bears legend Jim McMahon in Mayfield. In terms of personality that may be true but Mayfield as a better arm and even more swagger as a rookie than McMahon.

Cleveland has played fairly well since former head coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley were fired earlier this season. Interim head coach Gregg Williams has led the team to a 2-2 which is significant for a team that won only a single game in the previous two seasons combined. More credit might belong to Haley’s replacement, Freddie Kitchens, who has received rave reviews from NFL cognoscenti with some going so far as to calling him the Brown’s ‘MVP’. There’s been plenty of rumors about who will take over as head coach following the season with Bruce Arians, Mike McCarthy and Josh McDaniels’ names coming up frequently. The thinking is that Kitchens has definitely earned the right to stay on as offensive coordinator and a couple of wins down the stretch could put Williams in the running to become the team’s permanent head coach.

Carolina’s offense has struggled on the road this season with games of 24, 17, 21, 21,19 and 17 points. The defense is down substantially from years past—they rank #21 in scoring defense allowing 25.5 PPG. They’ve allowed multiple touchdown passes in all but one game this year and is averaging 31.5 PPG against during their four game losing run. Star tight end Greg Olsen is out for the season after re-injuring his surgically repaired foot and have announced that kicker Graham Gano will also miss this week. The Panthers quickly signed Clemson product Chandler Catanzaro to replace him and he does have NFL experience but will be hard pressed to step in and immediately replace one of the top kickers in the league. Quarterback Cam Newton might also miss after being limited in practice this week due to a sore shoulder. Panthers on a 1-5 SU/ATS run on the road this year and is just 8-15 SU on the road over the last three years. A dispirited Carolina team that might undergo even more changes this off-season. David Tepper purchased the team early last Summer and this will be his first full off-season. to make changes. This is a meaningless game for a banged up Panthers side but would be a nice victory for the improving Browns. Given the state of the Carolina defense it could be a huge day for Cleveland QB Mayfield and that should be enough to get the win.

BET CLEVELAND BROWNS PK OVER CAROLINA PANTHERS