Week 1 Is Finally Here
By @mrgroce
Sunday afternoon marks the beginning of another much anticipated season for the Cleveland Browns. After an offseason of constant turmoil, everyone's attention will finally be on football. Week One starts with the Browns traveling to New York to take on the Jets.
In my eyes, these two teams are very similar. You have a first and second year head coach. Both teams feature veteran journeyman starting quarterbacks. Both teams feature tough defenses with exceptional secondaries. The running game for both teams are average. The starting receiving corps of both teams, Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker for the Jets, Brian Hartline and Dwayne Bowe for the Browns, feature veteran guys who have had good careers, but are past their primes. This is going to sound pretty obvious, but the winner of this game will be the team that does not turn the ball over and avoids penalties in bad situations. There are some teams that can get away with both, but the Browns and the Jets aren't those teams.
The Browns seem to enter this contest with the most questions. If McCown goes down, is Johnny healthy enough to take over? If Isaiah Crowell is unproductive, can Shaun Draughn, if brought up from the practice squad, help or can Duke Johnson stay on the field long enough to make an impact? Will the receivers help take the pressure off of the running game? Will the offense stay on the field long enough to give the defense a rest?
As you can see, all of my questions come at the expense of the offense. The Browns are 1-15 in season openers since returning in 1999 and I have a hard time seeing them pull this one out on the road. I hope I'm wrong.
Prediction: Jets 20 - Browns 16
What: Cleveland Browns at New York Jets
Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Time: 1pm EST
TV/Radio: CBS, WKNR/Cleveland 850, WKRK/Cleveland 92.3 The Fan, WNCX 98.5
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