Playoff races are heating up as Thanksgiving and Week 13 are on the horizon. One of the many matchups with postseason implications this week is the 7-4 Cleveland Browns taking on the 6-5 Buffalo Bills. In an extremely tough AFC conference, neither team can afford to lose, and it should be a close one.
It’s anybody’s guess as to how the conditions might be in Buffalo assuming the stadium is ready for Sunday’s game, but that won’t stop Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer from throwing the ball. Hoyer’s averaged 33 pass attempts in 11 games and also has a whopping 90 over the last two weeks.
Hoyer also recently got his best receiver back from suspension in Josh Gordon, who played his first game of the season last week. There was some speculation that Gordon would be limited in his first week, but that didn’t happen as he was targeted 16 times and had 120 receiving yards. Hoyer to Gordon is what gives the Browns the edge this weekend vs. Buffalo.While the Bills have Sammy Watkins, he won’t match the production of Gordon. Cleveland should also run the ball better than Buffalo.
The Bills usually win games with their running attack, but C.J. Spiller is on the injured reserve and it’s unclear how healthy Fred Jackson is. Jackson is questionable for Sunday’s game, but expect him to be below 100 percent.
On Cleveland’s side, Isaiah Crowell has started producing more efficiently on the ground. He ran for 88 yards on just 12 carries last week and has helped stabilize a Browns run game that’s been inconsistent this season. Rookie Terrance West also got on track with a decent game last week and actually got two more carries than Crowell.
Cleveland should run the ball well on Sunday, and that will make Gordon even more dangerous in the passing game. The Bills haven’t been able to stop the run of late, giving up an average of 135 yards rushing over the last five games. If they can’t stop the run, Gordon will shred Buffalo’s secondary. The opposite happens with the Bills because if they have trouble running the ball, that makes it tougher to get Watkins open down the field.
The Bills are at home fighting for their playoff lives, so they won’t go down easy, but ultimately the Browns’ offense will make some big plays and escape Buffalo with the win.
Final score: Browns 24, Bills 13
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