We have an AFC North head-to-head for the middle game of our Week 15 tripleheader on Saturday between the Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns. As is the case for most games this time of year, this divisional matchup can shake up the playoff picture in the AFC.
Currently, Baltimore sits in first place in the AFC North at 9-4, but has the Cincinnati Bengals breathing down its necks waiting to leapfrog them for the top spot in the division and to jump into the No. 3 seed in the conference or possibly even higher. A win by the Ravens, however, would keep Cincy at arm's length no matter how their matchup turns out. As for Cleveland, a loss on Saturday coupled with a win by either the Jets, Patriots or Chargers would eliminate the Browns from playoff contention.
Before we dive a bit deeper into this matchup, let's take a look at how you can watch Saturday's action unfold.
All NFL odds via Caesars Sportsbook.
How to watch
Date: Saturday, Dec. 17 | Time: 4:30 p.m. ET
Location: FirstEnergy Stadium (Cleveland)
TV: NFL Network | Stream: NFL+
Follow: CBS Sports App
Odds: Browns -3, O/U 38
When the Browns have the ball
The arrival of Deshaun Watson hasn't been the boost that Cleveland was hoping to get on offense after the quarterback fulfilled his suspension. Over the last two weeks, the offense has looked like it is being manned by a quarterback who hasn't played in over 700 days. In the two weeks Watson has suited up, the offense is averaging eight points per game, has one offensive touchdown in 24 drives, and has a 17% drive score percentage. All of those figures either rank the worst in the league or tied for worst in the league.
Specifically with Watson, his 70.2 passer rating ranks 29th in the NFL over this two-week stretch. His completion percentage (24th) and yards per attempt (23rd) also rank in the bottom third of the league.
That said, Watson's struggles aren't the only thing that is holding down the Cleveland attack on offense. The running game has slowed down in recent weeks, especially in Week 14 against the Bengals where defensive tackle D.J. Reader helped silence that key area of attack for the Browns. In that game, Nick Chubb averaged just 2.4 yards per carry and the back is averaging 57 rushing yards per game over the last two weeks. He also has zero rushing touchdowns over that stretch as opposed to the 12 he had on the season prior.
Both the Texans and Bengals seemed to sell out to stop the run and forced the ball into a rusty Watson's hands and asked him to beat them. So far, that's worked in the opposition's favor and it'll be interesting to see if Baltimore's defense follows a similar approach.
On a more positive angle for this Cleveland offense, Watson did seem to have a solid rapport with David Njoku in the tight end's first game back last week, catching seven of his nine targets for 59 yards and a touchdown.
In reality, the Browns offense under Watson is still very much in its developmental stage given how late he was to arrive due to his suspension, so it's no true surprise to see things a bit clunky out of the gate. There are signs of improvement, but the unit will have another tough task in front of it as they takes on a Ravens defense that ranks eighth in the NFL in DVOA.
When the Ravens have the ball
Baltimore will not have Lamar Jackson (knee) for this game, but it does look like backup quarterback Tyler Huntley is slated to play after clearing concussion protocol earlier this week and carrying no injury designation into this game. Huntley does have some experience going against a Kevin Stefanski-led Browns defense as he came off the bench last year in Week 14 and completed 27 of his 38 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown while adding 45 yards on the ground in a Ravens loss.
While it's unclear how healthy Huntley is and how impactful he may be for this matchup, the point of attack for Baltimore should be on the ground, especially after welcoming back J.K. Dobbins last week. In his first game back since being activated off of IR, Dobbins rushed for 120 yards against the Steelers on just 15 carries. He played just 43% of the offensive snaps in that win as well, so there's room for him to expand upon that outing if the Ravens decide to give him a little more leash. If they decide to bring him along show, however, they have a solid stable of backs that includes Gus Edwards that can also gash this poor Cleveland run defense on the ground.
Entering Week 15, the Browns rank 30th in the NFL in DVOA against the run and are averaging 4.8 yards per rush, which ranks in the bottom third of the league. This weakness plays right into the identity of this Ravens offense, which is averaging 31.5 rushing attempts per game (sixth-most in the NFL). The combination of Dobbins and Edwards should be able to move Baltimore down the field and keep a strong time of possession advantage even if Huntley is playing at less than full strength.
Prediction: Ravens 24, Browns 23
