new england patriots vs. cleveland browns

4 Downs: What to take away from Browns loss vs. Patriots

Is there anything to takeaway from the Browns’ loss to the Patriots?

The good in this matchup between the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots is minimal. The Browns laid an egg and got outclassed by Bill Belichick and his team. With back-to-back weeks against division rivals, the season hangs in the balance with how this team responds after dropping to 2-4 on the year.

For now, we move forward with another edition of 4 Downs as we look to identify what stood out the most from this beatdown at FirstEnergy Stadium. What can we take away from this loss to the Patriots? Is there any hope left in this season that is beginning to look like was punted on from the start?

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Browns Morning Roundup: Recovering from Patriots hangover

Woke up hungover from the Browns loss. Recap it if you want here.

There is no other way to put it other than that the Cleveland Browns got outclassed in every phase of the game by the New England Patriots. They made a push late, but too many mistakes marred any chance at a comeback as an onside kick was recovered with a body part out of bounds, a muffed punt crushed any hope, and an underwhelming defense continues to underwhelm.

As the Browns now fall to 2-4 on the season, their hopes of even a whiff of the playoffs land directly on this upcoming two-game stretch against the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals. If they can win both against division rivals, then we are back in the ballgame.

Before we jump ahead, however, there was a ton to cover from yesterday in this Browns Morning Roundup.

4 takeaways from Patriots’ 38-15 win over Browns

The Patriots’ offense was rolling in Cleveland on Sunday. Here are 4 main takeaways from the matchup

The New England Patriots went into Cleveland on Sunday to compete against a Browns team that featured a great rushing offense. The Patriots’ victory was helmed by quarterback Bailey Zappe once again, as starting QB Mac Jones missed his third consecutive game with a high-ankle sprain.

The game was closer than the final score implies, with Cleveland scoring a touchdown with a little over six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter to cut New England’s lead to just nine points. Cleveland then seemed to recover the onside kick, but upon review, it was determined that the recovering player had a foot out of bounds when he touched the ball, negating the recovery.

Here are four takeaways from the game.

Shut off the TV: Browns lay an egg against the Patriots

There is no point in waiting until the end of the game, the Browns have laid an egg against the Patriots.

You will not see a final score in this article. You will not see the final stats from the box score between the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots. Instead, you are going to get an article that was written with 14 minutes left in the game as the Browns tack on some feel-good points on Cade York’s third field goal of the game from 51 yards out.

The Browns have laid an egg and are not even worthy of keeping on the television for the remaining 16 minutes of the game. To make matters worse, starting guard Wyatt Teller left the game with a calf injury in the first half and has not returned.

Quarterback Jacoby Brissett has returned to the level of the journeyman quarterback that he is with three interceptions today. The Browns are averaging three yards per carry on the ground, and the defense has shown nothing but quit.

There will be plenty of jobs up for grabs, and perhaps this season as a great deal of the established veterans have played particularly poorly. Safeties Grant Delpit and John Johnson III have been a massive letdown, and defensive coordinator Joe Woods better start cleaning out his locker as the bye week is just two weeks away.

The Browns have bright spots on this roster. Tight David Njoku continues his breakout campaign, Myles Garrett has broken the franchise sack record, and Nick Chubb continues to be the best running back in the league.

However, this is a team that has had too many opportunities to win football games. They have not been able to close. And now today, the Browns did nothing but lay a massive egg in a game they needed to win to get back to .500.

We are on to the Baltimore Ravens, but as the Browns are now looking towards a 2-4 record, this team has dug themselves a hole they will not be able to play themselves out of in 2022.

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Browns announce 7 inactives, Michael Woods II active for first time

The Cleveland Browns have announced seven inactives for their game against the New England Patriots

As the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots are now just about an hour from kickoff, the Cleveland Browns have announced seven inactives for the game. The most notable among them are starters Denzel Ward and Jadeveon Clowney, who were ruled out earlier this week. Active for the first time, however, is sixth round rookie wide receiver Michael Woods II.

The other inactives listed by the Browns include offensive linemen Joe Haeg, Drew Forbes, and Chris Hubbard, hybrid player Demetric Felton (who has lost return responsibilities to Chester Rogers), and second-year quarterback Kellen Mond.

The Patriots will be without quarterback Mac Jones, running back Damien Harris, wide receiver Nelson Agholor, linebacker Joshua Uche, and defensive tackle Lawrence guy.

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Mac Jones not expected to play vs. Browns

The Browns will likely get Bailey Zappe under center for the Patriots as Mac Jones is not expected to play

As the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots get set for the battle for .500, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports starting quarterback Mac Jones is unlikely to suit up. This means the Browns will face rookie backup quarterback Bailey Zappe today.

The Patriots have a slew of questionable players as well, including starting wide receiver Jacoby Meyers and running back Damien Harris. Neither of them has been ruled out, and Meyers is even expected to play according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Regardless of who is under center for the Patriots, the Browns have been abysmal at stopping the run this season. Focusing on Harris (if healthy) and second-year back Rhamondre Stevenson will be of the highest priority for this Cleveland defense.

#Patriots QB Mac Jones (ankle) was surprisingly listed as questionable for Sunday, but it's highly unlikely he plays, sources say. Almost certainly another week of Bailey Zappe.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 16, 2022

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Browns make slew of roster moves for matchup vs. Patriots

As the Cleveland Browns prepare for the New England Patriots, they have made a slew of roster moves.

With the New England Patriots on the docket tomorrow at FirstEnergy Stadium, the Cleveland Browns have made three roster moves. Unfortunately, one of those moves was not the activation of newly acquired linebacker Deion Jones, as he likely makes his debut next week against the Baltimore Ravens.

Elevations from the practice squad are not a new thing for all 32 teams, and churning the bottom of the roster is a common practice by the Browns. Both of these are moves they made today, as well as the activation of a player off of Injured Reserve and back onto the active roster.

We take a look at the three roster moves here and discuss their repercussions.

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Best NFL underdog picks and predictions for Week 6

Analyzing NFL Week 6 betting odds and lines, with expert predictions and picks of the 3 best underdogs to cash in on.

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Five moneyline underdogs won their games in Week 5. Another 10 underdogs covered the spread. Among the bigger surprises, the Houston Texans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Las Vegas Raiders lost to the Kansas City Chiefs by only 1 point and the Dallas Cowboys beat the Los Angeles Rams.

Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s NFL odds and lines, and tab the best NFL Week 6 underdog bets to cash in on among SportbookWire’s NFL expert picks and predictions.

As for our 3 best underdog picks last week, 2 of the 3 were correct, giving us a 7-8 total record on our top underdog picks for the season. Let’s see what we’ve got for this week.

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NFL underdog predictions: Week 6

Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at Saturday at 10:12 a.m. ET. All games Sunday and ET unless noted.

Dallas Cowboys +6.5 (-110) at Philadelphia Eagles – 8:20 p.m. (NBC)

The Eagles only beat the Cardinals by 3 last week and were a missed field goal away from overtime. Arizona’s defense held then to just 20 points and under 400 yards. Dallas’ defense has been better than Arizona’s. They are 3rd in points allowed and 7th in yards allowed.

QB Cooper Rush has not only been reliable and safe, having avoided getting intercepted so far this season, he has made plays.

Arizona showed that teams can run the ball on the Eagles, especially if the game is close.

I almost would take the Cowboys to win outright but I’m not that confident. The Cowboys should make this a game with their stout defensive line.

Also see: All Week 6 odds and lines

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New England Patriots (+117) at Cleveland Browns – 1 p.m (CBS)

The Patriots shut out the Lions, who were the league’s top-scoring team, in Week 6. While the Browns have scored 26 or more points in 4 of 5 games this season, the Pats have held opponents to 20 or fewer points 3 times.

The Browns’ defense is 23rd in points allowed and, even if QB Bailey Zappe starts in place of Mac Jones, New England is averaging 26.3 points per game in their last 3 contests.

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Kansas City Chiefs (+117) vs. Buffalo Bills – 4:25 p.m (CBS)

A rematch of the overtime playoff game last year that led to overtime rules changes for the postseason, both teams are 4-1 and playing well.

The Chiefs are No. 1 in scoring and have 3 games scoring 30 or more and 2 of 40 or more.

The Bills rank No. 2 in scoring and No. 1 in scoring defense.

The Chiefs have won 3 of the last 4 meetings and 6 of the last 8, even though the Bills beat them 38-20 in Kansas City last year in the regular season.

I give the Chiefs the edge here at home this time.

More NFL Week 6 picks and predictions

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