Brownie Bites
January 21, 2008A little help from his friends…a little
January 24, 2008Week 12
Houston Texans vs Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns Stadium
Cleveland, Ohio
1:00 PM
This week, two of the more improved teams in the NFL square off as the Browns (6-4) take on the Houston Texans (5-5). Every game from here on in is huge, that goes without saying, but it is especially important that the Browns keep up their solid play at home. If the Browns can protect their home field the rest of the way, then this team stands a good shot at getting in the playoffs. Playing the Texans used to be a good way to pick up a quick win, but this year’s Texans team is much different than those in the past.
Injury Reports
Houston Texans:
-Ahman Green, RB – Out (knee)
-Charlie Anderson, LB – Probable (knee)
-Kris Brown, K – Probable (foot)
-Mike Flanagan, C – Probable (back)
Cleveland Browns:
-Eric Wright, CB – Out (knee)
-Ethan Kelley, DT – Doubtful (knee)
-Tim Carter, WR – Questionable (finger)
-Kevin Shaffer, T – Questionable (knee)
-Shaun Smith, DE – Questionable (knee)
Game Outlook
Simply stated, don’t be surprised to see a high octane shoot out. The Texans come in with the #8 offense in the NFL (#6 passing, #23 rushing, #11 scoring) while the Browns have the #12 offense (#10 passing, #17 rushing, #5 scoring). Conversely, neither team brings in a defense worth bragging about, as the Texans are #18 in the NFL (#15 passing, #21 rushing, #23 scoring) and the Browns are #32 in the NFL (#31 passing, #28 rushing, #32 scoring). On paper, this doesn’t look like a great matchup, as the Texans have the better offense and the better defense. Furthermore, the Browns’ offense has been sputtering a bit lately. But those difficulties came against 3 pretty solid defenses in Seattle, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore. On top of that, Joshua Cribbs has been a madman, eating up some of the offense’s numbers himself with his stellar kick returns. Furthermore, since Ryan Tucker has taken over at right guard, Jamal Lewis has seen an increase in his rushing production. The keys to this game will be the Browns ability to control the game with their rushing, a return to form for DA, and the Browns will need to find some way to slow down Houston’s brilliant WR Andre Johnson (a task far more difficult with the injury to Eric Wright). I look for a pretty high scoring, yet close game. I think the Browns’ offense finds itself again against a defense which will appear much easier after playing at Pittsburgh and at Baltimore, and I look for the Browns to win this one 31-27.
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