The Cleveland Browns (2-7) visit the New Orleans Saints (3-7) in a contest between two last-place teams. Our Browns vs Saints prediction is for Cleveland to win.
Cleveland expected to make the playoffs and to challenge Baltimore and Pittsburgh for the AFC North title. Deshaun Watson’s poor performance and season-ending injury doomed them.
New Orleans started the season hot. They scored a combined 91 points in the first two games of the season crashing out of the gate at 2-0. They then lost seven straight costing head coach Dennis Allen his job. In Week 10 under interim head coach Darren Rizzi, they upset the first-place Falcons 20-17.
Head-to-head, Cleveland has leads 13-6.
Offshore Odds: Oddsmakers Label the Game as Pick’em
| Team | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Pk (-114) | O 44 (-115) |
| Saints | Pk (-114) | U 44 (-105) |
Cleveland Searches for Answers
The Browns started the season 1-6 with Watson under center. Just as speculation mounted that head coach Kevin Stefanski might make a quarterback change to the 2015 first-overall NFL Draft pick Jameis Winston, the decision was made for him when Watson tore his Achilles tendon.
In Cleveland’s first game with Winston as the starter, they upset Baltimore 29-24 with the veteran QB throwing for 334 yards and three touchdowns. In Week 9, Cleveland returned to its unfortunate normalcy in a 27-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Winston threw three interceptions. They had their bye in Week 10.
Cleveland’s defense has been middle-of-the-pack and passable. The problem for them was a vanilla offense and a near league-worst takeaway differential of -7.
The primary question is whether owner Jimmy Haslam III blames coach Stefanski and fires him. Former Tennessee head coach Mike Vrabel is a consultant and could be a replacement.
New Orleans Made Rizzi a Winner in His Debut
Not much was expected from New Orleans after they fired Allen and prepared to play first-place Atlanta, but they scored an upset victory.
In Week 10, quarterback Derek Carr was efficient going 16 of 25 for 269 yards with two touchdowns. It was a good outcome in a tough week for the Saints.
Offensively, they played reasonably well when Carr was healthy. The team was 2-3 to start the season though they had lost three straight when Carr injured his oblique. He missed a month and the offense struggled with rookie Spencer Rattler. Carr returned for a loss to 1-7 Carolina likely sparking Allen’s dismissal.
Star wider receiver Chris Olave was placed on injured reserve with a concussion.
Browns vs Saints Prediction: Cleveland Should Win in New Orleans
Winston is an emotional player and spent four years as a backup in New Orleans. He should be motivated. Games between cellar-dwellers are difficult to gauge as major changes for both organizations are on the horizon.
Our Browns vs Saints prediction is that Cleveland will win.
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