The Tennessee Titans open their 2019-20 NFL season with a road game against the improved Cleveland Brown on September 8, 2019, at the FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland.
The Tennessee Titans finished last season a mediocre 9-7 but the fact that they won their last four games gives them confidence heading to next season. Quarterback Marcus Mariota is coming off a poor season where he threw for only 11 touchdowns with 8 interceptions and ranked 19th among NFL quarterbacks during the 2018-19 season. With Mariota struggling, the offense ranked just 26th in the league at 19.4 points per game. If they are to do better this year, that offense should improve. On defense, there isn’t much to be done. Tennessee ranked 8th in total defensive yards allowed and 3rd in opponent points per game allowed. With safety Kenny Vacarro coming over from New Orleans, the defense might even be better this year. However, if the offense doesn’t do its job, that defense will be put to waste. The Titans were 3-5 SU on the road last season.
The Cleveland Browns had a 7-8-1 record during the 2018-19 season and not many people expected that. Baker Mayfield looked every bit the Messiah that the Browns needed and he is expected to even do better this year, especially with Cleveland acquiring the services of three-time pro-bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. who has four 1,000 yard seasons in his NFL career. The Browns hope that OBJ will make the difference for their offense this year and if Mayfield continues to improve, making the playoffs may not be a far fetched dream. The main concern for Cleveland will be their defense which ranked 30th in total defensive yards last season. But this summer saw the Browns add Olivier Vernon and Morgan Burnett plus they drafted cornerback Greedy Williams with their first pick. These new pieces are going to solve some of their issues on defense but not all. Hopefully, though, they will be enough to give Mayfield a chance to win more games this year. The Browns were 5-2-1 SU at home last season.
Tennessee is 6-4 SU in their last 10 games played. The Titans are 2-3 ATS in their last five road games played. Cleveland is 5-5 SU in their last 10 games played. The Browns are 3-1 SU in their last four games played. Head to head, Tennessee is 13-6 SU in their last 19 games against Cleveland and 5-2 SU in the last seven games in Cleveland but the Browns are 3-1 SU in their last four meetings.
The once-hapless Cleveland Browns are the NFL betting favorites to win their season opener. The new-look Browns are loaded and are ready to contend for a playoff spot. Baker Mayfield showed plenty of promise last season and with new weapons around him, he should be able to deliver more wins for the Browns. Odell Beckham Jr. should be a difference-maker as well.
The Tennessee Titans have a good defense but against the committee of Beckham, Landry, Njoku, and Chubbs, the Browns should be able to put up more than enough points to win this game.
I expect the Browns to come out firing in their home opener. Tennessee’s defense should hold the fort for a while but once Mayfield gets going, the Titans simply don’t have enough to hang around. I don’t expect a blowout though because Cleveland doesn’t have an elite defense. However, I think their offense is going to win them this game comfortably. I’m picking the Cleveland Browns to beat the Tennessee Titans on 9/8/19.
The Titans are 5-5 ATS in their last 10 games played. Tennessee is 3-2 ATS in their last five road games played. The Browns are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games played. Cleveland is 2-2 ATS in their last four games played at home. Head to head, Cleveland is 6-3-1 ATS in their last 10 games against Tennessee.
Titans
+5.5 (-110)
Browns
-5.5 (-110)
Odds were taken from Titanbet.com as of 7/18/19
The Titans are 0-6-1 ATS in their last seven games against opponents from the AFC North division but are 5-1 ATS in their last six games played in September. Cleveland is 1-4 ATS in their last five games against the AFC South division and the Browns are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 games in Week 1. I think that Baker Mayfield has enough weapons at his disposal to enable the Cleveland Browns to win by at least one touchdown. Prediction: Browns -5.5
The total has gone over in six out of the last 10 games played by the Titans. The under is 3-2 in Tennessee’s last five road games played. The under is 5-4-1 in the Browns’ last 10 games played. Cleveland has seen the total go under at 2-1-1 in their last four home games played. Head to head though, the over is 7-2-1 in the last 10 meetings between these two teams.
Titans
O 45.5 -110
Browns
U 45.5 -110
Odds were taken from Titanbet.com as of 7/18/19
The total has gone over in four out of the last five games of Tennessee against the AFC Conference. On the other hand, the total has gone over in 11 out of the last 16 games played by the Browns in September. These teams have combined to score 47.3 points per game in their last 10 meetings. More weapons for Mayfield means more scores for the Browns and adds to the total. I think this is going to be high-scoring because Cleveland’s defense isn’t as stout. Prediction: Over 45.5
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