Two teams who are just trying to get back to football instead of off-field nonsense will do just that on Sunday. The Browns, who are fresh off a blowout loss in New England and a Baker Mayfield run-in with the media, desperately need a win. Meanwhile, the Denver Broncos, who blew a win late last week and have now lost (or possibly benched?) Joe Flacco after he criticized the team, will turn to Brandon Allen at quarterback. He\u2019s never thrown a pass in his career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which team will get the press off their backs with a win here? Let\u2019s take a closer look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Denver Broncos are even more of a mess than the Browns are, which is really saying something. Denver will start Brandon Allen at quarterback in this game, which marks the Broncos\u2019 sixth different starting quarterback since 2017, a remarkable rate of turnover at football\u2019s most important position. Paxton Lynch, Trevor Siemian, Case Keenum, Brock Osweiler, and Joe Flacco preceded Allen, who will make his NFL debut at age 27. Allen has done a lot of standing and watching as a third-string quarterback buried in the depth chart on NFL rosters. There\u2019s a reason the sixth-round pick has never been tasked with starting: he isn\u2019t that good. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The quarterback position aside, the Broncos\u2019 offensive line and overall levels of production have been below average: 202 passing yards per game, 110 rushing yards per game, 312 total yards per game. None of those stats will get it done in the NFL. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sure, Cleveland has lost three in a row but the losses were to the San Francisco 49ers, the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. Those teams were a combined 21-2 entering Week 9. This is a far more manageable game for the Browns and we should see as much on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even though the Denver offense is a disaster, the Browns\u2019 offense isn\u2019t much better. Cleveland quarterback Baker Mayfield has thrown an NFL-leading 12 interceptions. His fourth-quarter passer rating, before this past weekend against the New England Patriots, was 25.6, a shockingly bad number for a player who showed so much promise late last season. Mayfield\u2019s overall passer rating was at 66, which put him outside the league\u2019s top 30 quarterbacks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Against New England, the Browns didn\u2019t score a touchdown in the second half of a 27-13 loss. They had three turnovers on three consecutive snaps in the first quarter. They also had 13 penalties in the game and are on pace for a league-record in that category. It\u2019s not just that the Browns are losing on a weekly basis, it\u2019s that they are embarrassing themselves. That\u2019s what gives the Broncos a shot here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sure, Flacco is out and Emmanuel Sanders was recently traded, but it\u2019s not as if this offense was any good before. Allen is probably a scrub but Flacco was playing at replacement-level. Maybe Allen comes in and gives this team a bit of a spark. The Broncos offense could use whatever they can get these days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The best bet in this game is Cleveland as they should snap their losing streak in this spot. In terms of the total, it\u2019s hard to see a ton of points here with Allen under center. Unless he throws a few pick-sixes, look for this to be an ugly offensive game on both sides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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