The most desperate of which is the quarter of a billion dollars promised to a guy who seems to have assaulted/harassed 60+ women in Houston. Since the Deshaun Watson contract has appeared on the books, the Browns have gone a whopping 12-13. Now maybe you’re thinking “That’s not fair, he didn’t even play in 14 of those games.” And you would be correct. However, with such a titanic dedication of resources sent Watson’s direction, it is appropriate to look at the big picture of team performance as a whole. It’s beyond inexcusable that Cleveland signed him (to the biggest guaranteed contract ever) knowing that he would be missing the majority of the 2022 season. At the end of the day in any business, you need your investments to pay dividends, and so far the money (and six draft picks) have not paid off. They are most certainly going to lose to Baltimore today, which will put the Browns at 5-4 and solidly on their way to a 9-8 finish and once again watching the playoffs from their couch. As it stands right now, the Browns are about 25% of the way through the Watson contract, with very mediocre results, and I cannot believe that there isn’t more criticism of the Browns ownership and front office.*
So, in other words, you reap what you sow. (Thanks Johnny Appleseed for that quote.) Now to the matter at hand… The Browns travel to Baltimore to take on a red-hot Ravens team, coached by the less offensive Harbaugh brother. Baltimore is on a historic tear winning four straight by an average score of 32-12, and they just destroyed Seattle 37-3 last week. (The same Seattle team that beat Cleveland 24-20 a couple of weeks ago.) The Ravens are tough, well-coached, balanced and have absolutely owned the Browns over the past decade. (Not to mention that the Browns have gone 2-11 in Baltimore since 2010.)
The Browns however, come into this clash awash in uncertainty. Nobody is quite sure who is going to start at either of the tackle positions on the offensive line, they all of the sudden can’t stop the run, and they have a quarterback whose shoulder could fall off at any given minute. It’s also worth noting that although the Browns are 5-3, it’s a bit misleading because the combined record of the opponents is 18-24. Also, two of Cleveland’s wins are sketchy to say the least; against San Francisco the 49ers kicker missed a chip shot that would have won the game, and in Indianapolis Cleveland kicked a field goal with 2 seconds left to beat a bad team 39-38. The point is that Cleveland is a whisker away from being 3-5 and a long way away from the caliber of team (and organization) of a team like the Baltimore Ravens.
To any Clevelanders that are making the trip to Baltimore, you might want to reconsider actually attending the game, unless you are just too intrigued at the possibility of eating tater tots covered in crab meat and some Old Bay based sauce. (Now that Klingon quote makes sense) Really, that’s a dish you can get at this stadium, for the low, low price of $18. There apparently are other fun things to do in Baltimore, I just don't know what they are. I’ve been there a couple of times, and it did not leave a favorable impression. The inner harbor was underwhelming, I couldn’t find a place to get a haircut, and there are few things more overrated than smashing crabs with a wooden hammer in order to eat them. Poor crabs.
So… time to pick a final score. It looks like the betting line is Ravens -6.5, which seems low to me, but I guess the wild card is Watson and his presence can make the offense difficult to defend. The Browns defense at times has been absolutely lights out, but this is also the same unit that gave up 38 points to the Colts. The Cleveland defense will be fired up for this game, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it is a tight game in the first half. Something Stefanski is terrible at is halftime adjustments, and I suspect that Harbaugh and his staff will have a significant advantage in the second half. When the dust settles, I see Baltimore winning this game something along the lines of 26-16.
*The huge disparity between the national perspective and the local slant on the Browns is hilarious. I love the Plain Dealer Browns writers, but listening to them try to describe a path to winning the division or making the playoffs is cringy. (as the kids say). National outlets like ESPN, etc barely mention the Browns, and when they do is often to criticize the Watson deal. The reality is probably between the two, the Browns do have talent, but are riddled with injuries at key positions, and that has all the hallmarks of a .500 team.
