Cleveland Browns vs Philadelphia Eagles Point Spread Picks

Cleveland enjoyed an impressive Week 1 win over Carolina with Shedeur Sanders passing for 138 yards and two TDs with no interceptions. However, Sanders suffered an oblique injury and is unlikely to play in this game. Meanwhile, Dillon Gabriel and Kenny Pickett are dealing with hamstring injuries, so Joe Flacco appears to be the starting QB by default. That could be a good thing if we're betting this week's game, as the Browns will have a very experienced signal caller against the Eagles, who seldom play any starters in preseason under Nick Sirianni. He is 4-7-2 straight up and 5-7-1 ATS in preseason, although the Eagles do come off a 34-27 win over the Bengals. Tanner McKee was 20 of 25 passing for 252 yards and two TDs and scored on a tush push on fourth-and-goal from the 1 for the Eagles. Kevin Stefanski is 6-0-1 ATS as a preseason underdog for Cleveland, and Sirianni is 0-6 ATS as a preseason home favorite. Take the Browns.

Cleveland and Deshaun Watson have suffered a barrage of insults and criticism after a humiliating 34-13 defeat at Washington, but when that happens the team that lost is ready to redeem itself the following week. Philadelphia is 2-9 ATS its past 11 games overall and 1-7 ATS at home coming off a double-digit ATS loss, which was a 33-16 defeat at Tampa Bay before the bye week. Cleveland is 11-1 UNDER before having to play Cincinnati the following game and the Browns have gone UNDER three of their past four overall. The Eagles have lost eight of 11 outright dating to last season and they have stayed UNDER four of six. The Eagles had only 114 net passing yards against the Buccaneers and were outgained 445-227. Philadelphia is 0-4-1 ATS its past five games as a favorite of 3.5-10.0 points. Take the points with the Browns as my Game of the Month, and bet this game to stay UNDER the total.

Cleveland beat Jacksonville 24-13 despite a short and ineffective appearance by DeShaun Watson, who completed 1 of 5 passes for seven yards and the game stayed UNDER. The Browns' backup QBs were impressive though as Joshua Dobbs was 10 of 13 for 108 yards and no interceptions and Josh Rosen completed 6 of 7 for 56 yards and no picks. Cleveland also gained 87 yards on the ground even though Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt didn't play. Coach Kevin Stefanski won all three preseason games in 2021 and all went UNDER. Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni is 0-3-1 straight up and 1-3 ATS in preseason. Jalen Hurts was 6 of 6 passing for 80 yards and a TD in one series for the Eagles, who lost 24-21 to the Jets, and Hurts doesn't figure to play much more this week. Gardner Minshew was 8 of 12 for 81 yards and Reid Sinnett was 9 of 17 for 81 yards against the Jets. Opponents have averaged only 12.2 points in Stefanski's preseason career and Cleveland is 20-3-1 UNDER its past 24 preseason games. Take the Browns and the UNDER.

Cleveland has played down to its competition for most of the season, and the Browns get a 3-5-1 opponent this week in the Eagles, who are in playoff contention only because they play in the loathsome NFC East. Philadelphia lost to the lowly Giants on Sunday while failing to convert any of their nine third downs, and Carson Wentz had another average game completing 21 of 37 for 208 yards and no touchdowns. Cleveland's defense gets the credit for the 10-7 win over the Texans, who were held to 243 total yards. The Browns racked up 231 yards on the ground, including Nick Chubb's 126 and 104 from Kareem Hunt. Philadelphia's defense is #26 in rushing yards allowed, and the Browns are #4 in rushing offense. Baker Mayfield has not exactly been outstanding, but he's doing enough to keep his team in the game and allowing his defense to control it. The Eagles haven't beaten a decent team all year. Play the Browns on the moneyline.

Cleveland's first two preseason games have gone UNDER and the Baker Mayfield hysteria has calmed down a bit after he was 7-of-13 for 75 yards and no touchdowns in his team's 19-17 loss to the Bills. Tyrod Taylor, who still is expected to be the starter when the regular season begins, went 4-of-7 for 22 yards and third-stringer, Drew Stanton, did not complete a pass in four attempts. The Browns were 3-of-12 in third down efficiency although the running game was a bright spot, gaining 164 yards on 5.1 yards per carry. Philadelphia looks to shore up its defense after losing 37-20 to the Patriots and third-year coach Doug Pederson was 6-2 UNDER in preseason coming into this year. Carson Wentz still is questionable for the first week of the regular season and Nick Foles is nursing an injured shoulder although he is expected to make an appearance in Thursday's game. Most of the Eagles' starters on offense won't play, including running backs Jay Ajayi, Corey Clement and Darren Sproles and wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Nelson Agholor. The Browns will likely keep running the ball a lot which will use plenty of the clock. Play the UNDER.