Best Bets: Cleveland Browns vs. New York Giants

The Browns welcome the New York Giants to Huntington Bank Field on Sunday afternoon for a game that Cleveland has to win. This marks the beginning of a stretch of games that Cleveland simply cannot stub their toe in thanks to the strength of their schedule.

The odds makers are giving the nod to the Browns as they are currently 6.5-point favorites. While the respect is accepted, favorites haven’t fared all that well early in the NFL Season. Entering Week 3, favorites have a 15-16-2 record against the spread and home favorites are 11-13-1 against the spread. Both the Bengals and the Ravens slipped up as more than a touchdown favorite at home, so the Browns must come ready to play on Sunday.

We rebounded last week after a 0-3 start with a 2-1 effort thanks to a pair of defensive props cashing.

Jeudy has fast become one of Deshaun Watson’s favorite targets. Through two games he has eight catches for 98 yards and one score, but has 14 overall targets. The big factor for Sunday is Jeudy ranks 16th in the NFL in target rate when defense generates pressure. The Giants are ranked 7th in pressure rate, so as they heat up the Cleveland offense, look for Jeudy to be the beneficiary of increased targets.

This is not meant to pile on to the Daniel Jones criticism, but it has been a struggle for him again this year. In two games this year, Jones has thrown for 178 yards and 186 yards, respectively, so he has lived right around this line. Even dating back to the start of last season before his injury, Jones only eclipsed the 186-yard mark twice making him 3-5 over his last eight. Included in his struggles, the Cleveland defense is forming into shape and will make it tough for Jones on Sunday.

Sunday is the perfect opportunity for Cleveland to continue getting rhythm in their passing attack. Week 2 in Jacksonville was a step in the right direction, but there is still so much room to go. I expect Amari Cooper to come out of this slump he is in and for Watson and the entire passing attack to look sharp on Sunday.

Cooper’s uncharacteristic start to the season needs to come to an end. No other way to put it other than he has been bad to start the year, but hasn’t lost the faith of his quarterback or his playcaller. This is a great spot for Cleveland to force-feed him to snap him out of this slow start and build up some confidence.

Season Record: 2-4

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