Cleveland Browns (2-7) @ New Orleans Saints (3-7)
Sunday, November 17, 1:00 PM ET
I think we have our winner for “Dud of the Week” here in New Orleans entering Week 11. You want to talk about two teams with little to play for at this point?
Here they are.
The Saints are at least coming off of a win this past weekend against the Atlanta Falcons, one of the more surprising wins we’ve seen from any team lately. Not that the Falcons are unbeatable, but the Saints have really been down bad as of late and that win came out of left field.
For the time being, the Saints have stopped the bleeding. They’re going to have to stop their old pal Jameis Winston who is coming back to New Orleans as a member of the Cleveland Browns in Week 11.
Winston is leading the Cleveland Browns’ offense following the latest season-ending injury to Deshaun Watson, whose situation looms over this Browns franchise like the darkest cloud imaginable. How do we pick and project this game with so many intangible factors at play?
Well, let’s start with the fact that Derek Carr undoubtedly gives the Saints a better chance to win than Spencer Rattler or Jake Haener, and when Carr plays well, the Saints are a tough team to beat, especially in New Orleans. It’s going to require the Cleveland Browns to come out and force Carr to make a bunch of mistakes in order to get a win in this one.
Do they have the ability to keep up in the event of a shootout? Can Jameis Winston play mistake-free football on the road? Vegas isn’t sure what to make of this game either with the Saints early 1.5-point favorites.
Prediction: Saints win 24-20