Ravens vs. Browns Point Spread: NFL Week 4 Odds, Prediction
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Edgar Chaput
Both sides have positives to take away from the first three weeks of action, although Cleveland is the one feeling great about itself, having walloped the Tennessee Titans 27-3 last week. The Ravens are also above .500, but suffered their first defeat of the season, a surprise 22-19 overtime loss to the Colts.
The NFL odds have pinned the Browns as slight -2.5 favourites.
NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis
Following years and years of futility against Baltimore, Cleveland has somewhat righted the ship lately. The Browns have captured two of the last three meetings and are 4-6 versus Baltimore in the last 10 matchups. Both of the two recent wins came at home. There have been many low-scoring contests involving these two, with a 12-9 Cleveland win in ’18, a 16-10 Baltimore win in ’21, and a 13-3 Cleveland win last December.
Just like with how they’ve collected their wins and losses, the Ravens started the new season with two successful covers before failing to do so in Week 3. Hence, they currently sit at 2-1 ATS.
For Cleveland’s part, they covered, then didn’t, then covered again for a 2-1 so far. Of note, the Browns have always been favoured this season.
Given that both sides have players who rank highly in defensive categories (Myles Garrett, Roquan Smith), the under feels like the safer bet.
Baltimore Ravens
It’s difficult to know what to make of Week 3’s surprise defeat to the Indianapolis Colts. The Ravens were favoured and had several opportunities to close the game, yet somehow found themselves on the wrong side of a 22-19 OT final.
For one, it was a slippery day in Maryland and it showed in how off some of Lamar Jackson’s passes were, in addition to how teammates mishandled the pigskin. When the air game failed, Jackson relied on his terrific running skills to the tune of 101 yards and his side’s two major scores. On the flip side, consider that Zay Flowers was the leading Raven receiver with eight catches…for 48 yards. The team certainly wasn’t expecting to go through the season with Gus Edwards and Melvin Gordon as the main backs, and it looked like a work in progress.
Ultimately it was a disappointing day. Justin Tucker missed a field goal as regulation time expired (a 61-yarder in the rain is not easy, granted), and Jackson’s decision-making late in the fourth quarter and in OT simply wasn’t up to par. With an extensive injury list, one wonders if this result will come back to haunt the Ravens down the road.
Who isn’t injured? S Marcus Williams, OT Ronnie Stanley, LB Odafe Oweh, and C Tyler Linderbaum are questionable, and that’s just the top of the list.
Cleveland Browns
Were it not for a spectacular defensive play by the Steelers extremely late in Week 2, the Browns would be flying high at 3-0. Nevertheless, 2-1 is a solid start and the team looks pretty good.
What’s more, they didn’t look the least bit troubled by the absence of Nick Chubb last week against the Titans. Garrett and company recorded five sacks, limited Tennessee to 2-for-12 efficiency on third down, and 94 total yards. Not 194, just 94. It’s early days in this season, but Cleveland’s defence looks ferocious and extremely unpleasant to play against. The first downs favoured the Browns 23 to six! This was also Deshaun Watson’s best game in a Browns uniform. 27-for-33 translated to 288 yards and two TDs. Has he done better in the past? Yes, but not in Cleveland, so that’s progress. If Amari Cooper can help him out with the sort of catches he made against the Titans, the passing game should be fine.
But through three weeks it’s all about the defence. Fewest total yards per game, fewest passing yards, second-fewest rushing yards, and fewest points. Wow.
CB Greg Newsome and OT James Hudson III are listed as questionable.
BAL
CLE