Cleveland Browns v. Baltimore Ravens Preview, Inactives
The Cleveland Browns limp their way into their home finale, coming off an ugly defeat at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals only to now face the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens have won ten games in a row dating back to the loss against the Browns in Baltimore. The Ravens not only have something to prove in Cleveland, but they are playing tremendous football while the Browns are woefully shorthanded in addition to struggling on the field.
The Browns offense is largely at full strength, though a number of key players are battling injuries or playing hurt. That's on top of the fact they haven't been operating with any consistency, despite production the last several weeks. Nick Chubb is the best thing on the offense, but anything other than giving him the ball is unpredictable. They can go right down the field and score easily or go three and out in bewildering fashion.
Defensively, the Browns are just struggling to put a group out there that can be competitive. Between injuries and suspensions, the Browns are scrambling to surround the few proven players remaining with a combination of rookies and street free agents, which now must find a way to limit the impact of Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.
The Ravens have some players that are hurt, but they aren't struggling to fill holes. They are currently rolling offensively, a threat to put 40 on just about anyone they play and their defense is much improved since the last time these two teams faced off.
If the Browns are going to win, they will need to capitalize on their opportunities to score points, protect the football and try to limit the number of possessions the Ravens have. It's an incredibly daunting task, which goes to show how wildly different the directions are these teams have taken since their matchup in week four.
The Browns will have Chris Hubbard back at right tackle and continue to choose not to have David Njoku out there, which only raises additional questions there. The defense will be continue to be brutally shorthanded on the edge as they are still without Olivier Vernon One positive note is that Eric Murray, who has been out for weeks with a knee injury is active.
