JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS @ CLEVELAND BROWNS 
Vegas Line: Browns + 1
Rob’s Line: Browns + 1.5
Sadly, for Cleveland Browns fans, this part of the schedule must be proving tough to watch…the Rams last week and now the Jaguars. However, hang on one second…the Rams beat the Browns and the Jags are favoured to win this week so to hell with dissing the opponents, how bad must it be being a Browns fan right now?
Peyton Hillis provided a spark last year that nobody saw coming and with Colt McCoy looking more and more assured at quarterback, matters were beginning to look up in Cleveland once the lockout ended. However, Hillis was distracted by contract talk and then there was the hullabaloo over him not playing against the Dolphins in Week 3 due to a bout of strep throat that some mistakenly put down to him fabricating by way of holding out and now he can’t play as he’s out indefinitely with a hamstring injury. The run game has never recovered and opposing defenses have been able to focus on stopping the pass and despite McCoy being extremely liberal with his throws, it’s not been enough to prevent the Browns from falling to 3-6.
For a blue collar city such as Cleveland, having no run game to speak of, no meat and potatoes gameplan, must hurt. Ohio is arguably the heartbeat of football and the sport’s basics and fundamentals from its inception has been the running game…the passing boom came a lot, lot later.
This part of the game has presented Jacksonville with no such problems and Maurice Jones-Drew continues to be the heartbeat of the team and it’s his performance that seems to dictate the outcome of the game each week. In the four games where he’s rushed for at least 97 yards, the Jags have won three of them, including that unforgettable 12-7 MNF win over the Ravens. In addition (and perhaps unsurprisingly?), Jones-Drew is the prototypical workhorse back this season, leading all running backs with 191 carries so far.
Rookie QB Blaine Gabbert desperately needs help at wide receiver and you have to think that this will be addressed with their first round pick in next April’s draft. This is a sound football team, but Gabbert’s being severely exposed by a lack of receving talent. The defense has kept games close this season although losing cornerback Rashean Mathis for the season with a torn ACL is a headache they could’ve done without.
Jones-Drew could have a monster day and if you see him gaining at least 97 yards on the ground (which I do), then how can you not like the Jags giving up just a point? Gabbert won’t want to throw the ball too much in the vicinity of Cleveland’s number one ranked pass defense, but the truth is, is that he shouldn’t have to. In a game that, let’s be honest, isn’t the most attractive to the neutral, what is alluring is that spread of Jacksonville minus just one point.
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