Monday Night Football Betting: Ravens are going to spank the Browns

Baltimore Ravens @ Cleveland Browns

Monday, November 16th – Cleveland Browns Stadium – Cleveland, OH

NFL Point Spread: Ravens -10.5, O/U: 40.5 

The Baltimore Ravens are in deep trouble. Where does that put the Cleveland Browns, then? A team in dire need of a win on Monday Night Football will tackle a woeful assemblage of NFL players that doesn’t even deserve to be called a team. That’s the best way to characterize a confrontation between the old Cleveland Browns (before owner Art Modell moved them to Baltimore and changed the team’s name) and the current incarnation. The “new” Browns have been so bad that they’re making Clevelanders wish that they actually did have an NFL franchise. Right now, the Browns are merely playing to preserve some semblance of self respect after another embarrassing performance in a 30-6 loss at Chicago on Nov. 1. Baltimore is coming off a damaging 17-7 loss at Cincinnati on Nov. 8, which severely hurt the Ravens’ chances of winning the AFC North. 

NFL Handicapping: What The Ravens Have To Do To Win 

Don’t make huge mistakes. It’s not original, of course, but against any of the NFL’s really bad teams – and Cleveland fits the bill – that’s basically the first, last and only key to victory. Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco threw two interceptions last weekend in a 10-point loss to Cincinnati, and the young signal caller, for all the accomplishments he’s already accumulated in his career, has to regain the savvy and steadiness that marked his 2008 season. If Flacco doesn’t gift-wrap picks, and the Ravens make routine plays throughout the course of this contest, they shouldn’t be sorely tested by a very inept opponent.  

Another thing to consider from a Baltimore perspective is that Cleveland will be starting Brady Quinn, and not Derek Anderson, at quarterback. The Ravens need to be disciplined as they prepare to face a quarterback who hasn’t been the Browns’  regular starter in recent weeks. If Baltimore’s corners, who have been shaky this season, read Quinn’s moves while thinking about Anderson’s own unique tendencies, Cleveland could hit big plays in the passing game. The Ravens can’t afford breakdowns in the secondary against an untested NFL quarterback. 

NFL Handicapping: What The Browns Have To Do To Win 

The Browns need to max out, and that’s putting a very big burden on the back of coach Eric Mangini’s ballclub. It’s worth remembering that Cleveland’s only win in the first half of the 2009 NFL season was a 6-3 win at Buffalo in which Derek Anderson went 2-of-17 for 23 yards and an interception. Yes, even when they won, the Browns were absolutely horrible. Therefore, against a 4-4 Baltimore squad that possesses an appreciable amount of talent, Mangini’s men will have to produce a big-league performance accompanied by A-grade effort.  
Brady Quinn, filling in for Anderson as the Browns’ starting quarterback, can’t be content to merely avoid turnovers. For Cleveland, every series has to be defined by aggression, and the entirety of this contest must feature a go-for-broke attitude. The Browns might be a franchise on the road to nowhere, but at least they have nothing to lose… they can’t be any worse than they’ve been through their first eight games. If Cleveland takes chances at every turn and hits a few big plays, perhaps the home side can make things close in Northeastern Ohio.