Will the Browns defeat the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium?
I think they will, but I can’t be sure. And that goes beyond the old NFL adage that on any given Sunday, any team can beat any other team.
The Browns have a much better team than Arizona.
They have Deshaun Watson back at quarterback.
And they’re playing in Cleveland, where, with a 3-1 record thus far in 2023, they’ve begun to re-establish a home-field advantage.
On most days, that should be more than enough to expect to win, right?
Yes, on most days.
But Sunday may not be one of those days.
You’ve not read or heard this anywhere else, but I think it’s a good chance that the Browns will be flatter than a pancake on Sunday. And you can’t be flat in the NFL and expect to win consistently. The teams are too balanced.
So, then, while the Cardinals don’t exactly instill fear into the hearts of their opponents, the Browns’ projected lack of emotion, and thus readiness, will come mostly because of the fact they are coming off a horrific 24-20 loss to the Seattle Seahawks last Sunday. It came as a result of what was probably the worst call in team history when, on third-and-three from near midfield and with his team leading 20-17 with just over two minutes left, head coach Kevin Stefanski inexplicably called for a P.J. Walker pass instead of a run. His attempt bounced off the helmet of a leaping oncoming rusher and ricocheted into the hands of a Seahawk. Five plays later, the Seattle offense, rejuvenated in getting one last chance after having been dormant since the middle of the second quarter, scored the game-winning touchdown.
Having snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, the Browns found themselves at 4-3 instead of 5-2 and right on the heels of the AFC North-leading Baltimore Ravens (6-2).
Yes, something like that can sure take the wind out of your sails. Will it still be affecting the Browns on Sunday? Again, I think so, but we’ll see.
The worst call in Browns history? Certainly, for in the case of Red Right 88, the decades-long leader from back in the 1980 AFC divisional playoffs against the Oakland Raiders, head coach Sam Rutigliano, with his team trailing 14-12 in the final minute and having the ball deep in Oakland territory, went for the touchdown instead of trying for a field goal on a bitterly cold day after kicker Don Cockroft had really struggled all afternoon, calling on NFL MVP quarterback Brian Sipe to throw into the end zone to Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end Ozzie Newsome. The pass was intercepted, but the odds were much better for that play to work than the one Stefanski called.
Steve King
