Patriots vs Browns: Betting odds, TV, weather, and matchups

The New England Patriots return home to Gillette Stadium to face the Cleveland Browns in Week 8. Here’s all the information you need to watch the game.

The New England Patriots are finally returning home to Foxborough after playing three of their last four games away from Gillette Stadium. It was a highly successful road trip for the Pats, who outscored the Buffalo Bills, Washington Redskins, and New York Jets by a combined margin of 82-17.

In beating those three teams on the road (along with the Miami Dolphins in Week 2), New England has already surpassed their season win total from 2018 in terms of away games, when they went just 3-5 on the year. The Patriots still have road games remaining against the Baltimore Ravens (Week 9), Philadelphia Eagles (Week 11), Houston Texans (Week 13), and Cincinnati Bengals (Week 15).

Anything less than a final 5-3 away record – at minimum – would certainly be shocking this season.

First things first though, the Patriots must take on the Cleveland Browns at home in Week 8. Many analysts and fans figured this game could be a potential AFC Championship Game preview at the beginning of the season, given New England’s perennial dominance and the infusion of talent up in Cleveland during the past two years.

But things haven’t exactly worked out as planned so far for the Browns.

An offseason brimming with hype and lofty expectations has made the team’s 2-4 start all the more disappointing. The Browns currently find themselves tied with the Ben Roethlisberger-less Steelers in the middle of the AFC North race. Both the Browns and the Steelers remain two-and-a-half games behind the division-leading Ravens, whom the Patriots will travel to face next week before arriving at their Week 10 bye.

Cleveland’s stumbles can be blamed on a number of factors this season, but the two largest culprits are probably turnovers and a porous run defense.

Exciting young quarterback Baker Mayfield began his second year in the league with plenty of promise, but so far he’s been a bit of a disaster in Year Two. While he’s still more than capable of turning his season around and leading an uber-talented Browns squad to the playoffs, he needs to dramatically cut down on his interceptions – he currently leads the NFL in picks thrown (11).

Unfortunately for Mayfield, he now gets to square up against the league’s most terrifying defense – and the one that leads the NFL in snaring interceptions this season with 18 picks already. The Patriots secondary is fresh off a commanding effort in which they intercepted Jets QB Sam Darnold four times and had him “seeing ghosts.” If they can deliver a similar performance against Mayfield, New England should win this game going away.

Apart from Mayfield’s struggles with turning over the ball, the Cleveland Browns defense needs to shore up against opposing rush attacks… and fast. The Brownies are giving up over 150 yards on the ground per game – the third-worst mark in the NFL behind the Cincinnati Bengals and the Miami Dolphins.

This could all mean a great day at the races for Patriots running back Sony Michel, who has had his own share of struggles getting going in Year Two. Michel is averaging just 3.3 yards per run, and he has yet to rush for 100 yards in a game this season – this despite the fact that he’s seen some of the softest run defenses in the NFL through seven games, including the Dolphins, Redskins, and Giants.

If Michel can finally start showing some of the speed, strength, and explosiveness that made him a first-round draft pick in 2018 – and if the Patriots defense can continue their winning ways against the mistake-prone Mayfield – New England could very well destroy Cleveland this afternoon.

Here’s all the info you need to take in today’s game:

Date: Sunday, October 27, 2019
Kickoff time: 4:25 pm EST
Location: Foxborough, Massachusetts
Stadium: Gillette Stadium
TV channel: CBS
Radio: TuneIn
Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Betting odds: New England -12.5 (Over/Under: 46), courtesy of The Action Network
Weather updates: 53 degrees F; light rain; 79% chance of precipitation

The Patriots offensive line will also need to be at their best today with the NFL’s current leader in sacks paying them a visit. Myles Garrett, looking every bit like the No. 1 overall pick from the 2017 NFL Draft, has been blowing up quarterbacks all year. It will be up to the Pats’ offensive linemen – specifically tackles Marcus Cannon and Marshall Newhouse – to keep Garrett as far away as possible from 42-year-old Tom Brady.