Before the season, this looked like one of the most compelling matchups of the NFL schedule: The defending champion New England Patriots taking on an upstart Cleveland Browns team that, after adding star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to an already-promising young core, was a popular pick to win the AFC North.
Seven weeks in, the Patriots are where everyone expected them to be, undefeated and holding down the top spot in the AFC East.
The Browns? Well, they’ve looked a lot like the Browns of old.
Cleveland enters this highly anticipated contest at a disappointing 2-4, stumbling out of the gate in the first year of the Freddie Kitchens era despite boasting one of the league’s more talented rosters.
Can Cleveland right the ship on Sunday? Or will New England remain unbeaten at the season’s midway point?
THE DETAILS
Time: Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
Location: Gillette Stadium
TV: CBS
LAST WEEK
In what should have been one of their toughest games of the season to date, the Patriots steamrolled the New York Jets 33-0 on Monday night at MetLife Stadium to improve to 7-0. Jets quarterback Sam Darnold was especially dreadful in that game, throwing four interceptions and losing a fumble while posting a passer rating of 3.6 — the lowest ever against a Bill Belichick-coached Patriots team.
The Browns are coming off their bye week, giving them a considerable rest advantage over their hosts. In their last outing, they built a 20-6 lead over the Seattle Seahawks and led by three with less than four minutes remaining before a late Seahawks touchdown and a subsequent Baker Mayfield interception sealed a 32-28 Seattle victory.
THE ODDS
The Patriots, who have not lost at home since Week 4 of the 2017 season, enter the weekend as 10-point favorites over the visiting Browns. New England is 5-2 against the spread this season, covering in each of its last three games (wins over the Redskins, Giants and Jets). Cleveland is 2-4 ATS.
INJURY REPORT
The Patriots will be without tight ends Matt LaCosse (knee) and Ryan Izzo (concussion) for the second consecutive week. Ben Watson and Eric Tomlinson will be their two options at the position.
Five Patriots players are listed as questionable:
WR Julian Edelman (chest)
RB Rex Burkhead (foot)
S Patrick Chung (heel/chest)
OG Shaq Mason (ankle)
WR Gunner Olszewski (ankle/hamstring)
Burkhead has missed the last three games. Chung has missed two of the last three. Mason, who’s started every game this season, practiced in a limited capacity Thursday and Friday after sitting out Wednesday’s walkthrough.
The Patriots also placed receiver Josh Gordon on injured reserve this week, reportedly with the intention of releasing him once he gets healthy.
For the Browns, safety Damarious Randall (hamstring) has been ruled out. Offensive tackle Kendall Lamm (knee) and safety Sheldrick Redwine (hamstring) are questionable.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Mohamed Sanu, Patriots wide receiver
Sanu joined the Patriots via trade on Wednesday, and quarterback Tom Brady seemed to take to him immediately. The 30-year-old looks like a natural fit for New England’s offense and should soon slot in as the team’s No. 2 receiver behind Julian Edelman. Speaking of slot, it’ll be interesting to see how Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels utilizes Sanu, who’s primarily played inside over the course of his eight-year NFL career. He’ll be a valuable asset for Brady on third down and should help offset the loss of Gordon, who didn’t play last week against the Jets.
Baker Mayfield, Browns quarterback
New England is 13-0 against second-year QBs since 2013 and 2-0 this season, holding 2018 first-rounders Josh Allen and Darnold to a combined total of zero touchdowns and seven interceptions. Mayfield, who has thrown an NFL-high 11 interceptions this season, will have an extremely difficult time ending that streak unless he drastically improves his ball security. He’ll be facing a Patriots defense that’s picked off a league-best 18 passes through seven games — nine more than the second-place team on that list.
In his lone game against an elite defense this season (at San Francisco in Week 5), Mayfield completed just 8 of 22 passes for 100 yards and no touchdowns with two picks, four sacks and a lost fumble, and Cleveland lost 31-3.
Stephon Gilmore, Patriots cornerback
The Gilmore vs. Beckham showdown might be the best cornerback-wideout matchup Patriots fans will see this season. Gilmore is coming off two of his most impressive performances of 2019, allowing a total of two catches on 11 targets for 19 yards with two interceptions and four pass breakups in wins over the New York Giants and Jets. Beckham has been inconsistent in his first season in Cleveland (100-plus yards in two games; fewer than 30 in two others) but remains one of the NFL’s elite pass-catchers.
Worth noting: Gilmore called Beckham a “prima donna” after their last meeting in 2015 and later chirped him on Instagram. On Friday, Gilmore said Beckham “can get off press (coverage) if you let him,” another subtle dig at the star wideout. This should be a fun one.
Myles Garrett, Browns edge rusher
The clearest path to victory for Cleveland is through Garrett, the Browns’ beastly third-year pass rusher. Garrett is tied for the NFL lead in sacks with nine in six games, and he lines up on both ends of the line in Steve Wilks’ Browns defense, meaning he’ll test right tackle Marcus Cannon and left tackle Marshall Newhouse, who’s filling in for the injured Isaiah Wynn. If those two can’t at least limit the young superstar, Brady and the Patriots’ offense could struggle to move the ball effectively. Brady called Garrett “one of the best players in the league” this week. Belichick said blocking him is “pretty much impossible.”
Justin Bethel, Patriots special teamer
A special teamer? Really? Yep. Bethel is one of the absolute best in the game at what he does (chase punts, cover kicks, block field goals) and he now joins forces with Matthew Slater, who might be the best special teams player in NFL history. Watching the two harass opposing return men from their respective gunner spots should be wildly entertaining, especially is rookie Jake Bailey continues to boom punts the way he has of late.
Nick Chubb, Browns running back
The Patriots’ defense has been unbeatable against the pass this season. Against the run, they’ve been a bit more lenient. Le’Veon Bell averaged 4.7 yards per carry on 15 attempts last week. In Chubb’s last four games, he’s racked up 96 rushing yards (4.2 per carry), 165 (8.3), 87 (5.4) and 122 (6.1) and scored five touchdowns. Even if Cleveland’s offense sputters, Sony Michel’s former college teammate still could finish with a respectable stat line.
