On Sunday, the Cleveland Browns are hosting a “Sunday Night Football” game for the first time since 2008. Though 3-point underdogs “underdawgs” to the visitors and reigning NFC champions, the Los Angeles Rams, the 1-1 Browns are trying to capture a statement win at home. Of course, it won't be easy to beat the 2-0 Rams, but here are four reasons why they'll do so.
The pass-rush
How do you get a Jared Goff flustered? First, you put him in the Dawg Pound, as expressed above. Then, you play him aggressively; not once, not twice, but on every single snap. Watch his film against the Chicago Bears from 2018 — arguably his worst game of the season –, he was off all night due to pressure.
The Browns are going to try to emulate that. If I were a betting man, I'd say they'd accomplish it. Why? Two names: Myles Garrett and Olivier Vernon. Though Vernon doesn't have a sack to his name, he's done a good job creating pressure. That's all he needs to do with Garrett leading the league in sacks with five.
Dawg Pound
There's nothing like home-field advantage. When that home field has been waiting 11 years for a “Sunday Night Football” game, that just gets emphasized. Factor in that the Browns are the most exciting they've been in some time and need a statement win over the Rams on Sunday, it's going to be crazy.
Cleveland is going to get FirstEnergy Stadium rocking. That doesn't bode well for Rams quarterback Jared Goff, who at away games, takes a seven-point hit to his average passer rating. The Dawg Pound is going to try to get into the head of Goff; bet on them succeeding.
The exploitation of the left side
The Rams can't cover the left side of the field; they can cover the right and middle at a high-level, but the left side is their Achilles heel as a coverage unit. For instance, Football Outsider's DVOA ranks them as the 28th best team at covering the left side, via ESPN — Cleveland must exploit that.
Luckily, Baker Mayfield isn't Mitchell Trubsiky; he can throw to the left. While he's not elite in that category, Sharp Football Stats gives him a 69% completion rate when targeting the left between 0-14 yards. In 2018, the quarterback had a 93 passer rating targeting that area and 85 when going deep on the left. If Freddie Kitchens is aware, he'll draw up plenty of left-side plays.
Nick Chubb
Browns running back Nick Chubb hasn't gotten off to an explosive start — tallying 137 rushing yards and a score on 35 attempts. However, Sunday night is as good of a date to propose that he'll bounce back.
The Rams have big names on defense, but they aren't particularly stout against the run. They boast a negative Football Outsiders DVOA and are 23rd in adjusted line yards allowed, per Aaron Schatz via ESPN. In 2019, they've allowed big runs, and haven't done a great job covering screens. Chubb is a talented back that will be exploited to take advantage of the Rams' on and off run defense.
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