Cleveland Browns: 3 Bold predictions vs. Bengals, Week 14

Somehow, the Cleveland Browns still have playoff hopes as they enter a Week 14 game against the Bengals. Bold predictions for the Browns on Sunday.

If the Cleveland Browns were able to take care of business against the Steelers last week, they would be entering Week 14 at 6-6 and with a strong chance at still making it into the Wild Card in the AFC. Instead, they delivered a second-half stinker and fell to 5-7 on the year, clinging to much thinner postseason hopes as they enter their first matchup of the year against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Bengals should be a favorable matchup for the Browns to keep their slim chances of making the postseason alive. After all, Cincinnati just won their first game of the season last week, taking down the rollercoaster Jets. With this matchup in Cleveland at FirstEnergy Stadium, Freddie Kitchens’ team should have the advantage.

But with Baker Mayfield dealing with a hand injury, Myles Garrett suspended, the offensive line playing poorly and Odell Beckham Jr. still underperforming, nothing is certain for the Cleveland Browns in the 2019 season at this point.

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Taking a great matchup but all the team’s shortcomings into account, these are three bold predictions for the Browns in their Week 14 AFC North showdown with the Bengals.

3. Dalton picked off three times

Andy Dalton made his return to the starting lineup for the Bengals last week after being benched for rookie Ryan Finley. The veteran quarterback performed well in helping guide Cincinnati into the win column for the first time this year, going 22-of-37 for one touchdown and no interception. However, that shine is likely to wear off sooner rather than later.

Behind an awful offensive line and with an inconsistent group of weapons, Dalton has been prone to some bad games when on the field. Earlier in the year, the Red Rifle had an abysmal three-interception outing against the Jaguars. On Sunday in Cleveland, the Browns defensive back duo of Denzel Ward and Greedy Williams will replicate that effort as they intercept Dalton thrice.

2. OBJ notches 100-yard game

This has been a first season with the Browns to forget of Odell Beckham Jr. He’s on pace for just a hair over 1,000 yards on the year and has found the end zone just twice. However, there have still been flashes of great play from the wide receiver, especially against bad defenes. Against the Jets, Beckham had six catches for 161 yards and a touchdown. OBJ also had six receptions for 84 yards and a score against Miami.

Given that the Bengals defense has been one of the worst overall groups in the league this season, you have to figure that this is another prime opportunity for Beckham to make some noise. With Mayfield looking to get the ball out quick and on short throws given his injury, OBJ will make the Cincinnati defense pay with his speed, ending the game with over 100 receiving yards.

1. Chubb rolls with 200 rushing yards

While Beckham will benefit from Mayfield throwing the ball to the short areas of the field, the biggest beneficiaries on the Browns offense will be running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. The former has been quite good as of late, though the arrival of Hunt has led many to think otherwise. However, Chubb has 90 or more rushing yards in three of his last four games, including two 100-yard days.

On Sunday, he’ll be running against the worst rushing defense in the NFL as Cincinnati is giving up 157.6 yards per game to opposing run games on the season. With the injury to Mayfield, Chubb should get close to 30 carries in Week 14 and he’ll make the most, shredding through the Bengals and ending up with a monstrous 200-yard game to his credit.