2023 NFL picks, score predictions for Week 15

Chicago Bears (5-8) @ Cleveland Browns (8-5)

Sunday, December 17, 1:00 PM ET

The NFL is too crazy to be scripted, all you conspiracy theorists. This is wild.

The Cleveland Browns have had one of the best defenses in the league all season, but the reason they are 8-5 is because head coach Kevin Stefanski and his staff have done such an incredible job of preparing their quarterbacks to play on a weekly basis. The Browns are one quarterback shy of a full five-man pitching staff at this point.

Deshaun Watson, PJ Walker, and Dorian Thompson-Robinson have all taken their turns for this Browns team, but Joe Flacco is the one who has the best passing outing of the season for Cleveland (311 yards, 3 TDs), and he did it this past weekend.

With the Browns playing at home in this game, and Flacco looking as good as he has, it’s understandable that Cleveland opens as a three-point favorite in this game. I can’t help but be intrigued by Justin Fields, DJ Moore, and this Bears team, however. 

It’s just hard to know which way to go, even for NFL picks purposes. I have almost no confidence in this pick regardless of which way I go. I’m going to take the Bears in a road upset, with Flacco perhaps coming back to earth a little bit.

Prediction: Bears win 26-24