Tennessee Titans at Cleveland Browns Line
Both the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns enter Week 4 off back-to-back victories. Something will have to give for one of these squads when they meet Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Odds makers are expecting a dog fight. The Browns are currently listed as a slim one-point favorite with the total set at 37.5.
After losing to Cincinnati in Week 1, Cleveland has rattled off victories over Indianapolis and Miami.
Last week, a 14-yard touchdown strike from Colt McCoy to Mohamed Massaquoi with 43 seconds remaining tied the game, and a Phil Dawson PAT gave the Browns a thrilling 17-16 win over the Dolphins.
With running back Peyton Hillis out with strep throat, McCoy had to carry the load. He completed 19 of 39 passes for 210 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
The Titans have recovered from a two-point loss at Jacksonville in their season opener with wins over Baltimore and Denver.
Tennessee overcame a 14-10 fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Broncos 17-14 on Matt Hasselbeck’s touchdown pass to Daniel Graham with 4:24 left.
Hasselbeck has come up big as teams continue to hold down All-Pro running back Chris Johnson. The former Seattle signal caller completed 27 of 36 passes for 311 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions last week.
The Titans currently rank seventh in the NFL with 300.7 passing yards per game and last in the league with 51.7 rushing yards per contest.
Tennessee may have to rely more on its running game after losing wide receiver Kenny Britt to a season-ending knee injury. Britt leads the team with 289 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
This could be the week for the running game to get on track. Cleveland’s stop unit ranks 29th in the league with 128.7 rushing yards allowed per game.
The Browns gave up 138 yards on the ground to the Dolphins last Sunday.
Cleveland will need Hillis back on the field this week as it goes up against a Tennessee defense that leads the NFL with 261 yards allowed per game. The Titans rank second in the league with 14.3 points allowed per contest.
Tennessee hasn’t been giving up much through the air but did show some susceptibility to the run in its Week 1 defeat, allowing the Jaguars to rack up 163 rushing yards.
It may take a big game from Hillis for Cleveland to come out on top.
Cleveland has won three of the last four meetings in this series, but Tennessee won the most recent meeting 28-9 at home on Dec. 7, 2008.
It is worth noting that the Titans are on a 14-4 against the spread run in road games when matched up against poor offensive teams averaging 4.75 yards or fewer per play. The Titans have defeated these foes by an average of 8.6 points.
In regard to the total, the under may be worth a look. After all, the Browns have played to the under in 21 of their last 28 home games when valued as a favorite of three points or less. We have seen an average of just 34.9 total points scored in these games.
Jimmy Boyd is off to a hot 6-2-1 start with his Sunday NFL plays through the first three weeks of the season. Join him again this Sunday for more expert premium picks!
