The first battle of Ohio in the 2022 NFL season takes place on Monday Night Football as the Cleveland Browns have a chance to end a four-game losing streak when they host the Cincinnati Bengals at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Cleveland have lost back-to-back home games, while the reigning AFC champions have won four of their last five encounters.
Match preview
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After winning two of their first three games this season, the Browns have failed to sustain much momentum in recent outings, as they are tied for third in the AFC North with a record of 2-5.
They looked fine early on without the services of the suspended Deshaun Watson, but head coach Kevin Stefanski could probably use him right now as his offence have become a little one-dimensional.
Watson is undoubtedly an X-factor and has produced magical moments in the past to propel average teams into great ones, and at the moment, the Browns are competing hard but have been coming up just short, losing four of their five games this year by a field goal or fewer.
Their running attack has enabled them to keep the ball moving and sustain drives, as they are fourth in the league regarding rushing, averaging 163.6 yards per game.
Defensively, the Browns have played the pass relatively well at times, allowing a quarterback rating of 92.4, in addition to a 60.2 completion percentage, conceding eight touchdowns and producing two interceptions.
Along the line of scrimmage, Cleveland have six sacks, seven quarterback hits and two forced fumbles but are struggling against the run, allowing an average of 4.7 yards per carry this season and 135.6 yards a game.
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Following a pair of bitterly close defeats to start the season, Cincinnati have turned it around and found ways to win, capturing their last two outings versus the New Orleans Saints (30-26) and Atlanta Falcons (35-17).
Cincinnati possess a trio of dynamic receivers who are as sure-handed as they get, with plenty of big play ability, not to mention the Bengals have one of the toughest quarterbacks in the league, with Cincy currently fifth in passing, averaging 287.7 yards per game this year.
Head coach Zac Taylor is still trying to figure out ways to keep his star quarterback protected as his team have allowed 25 sacks on the year, though as long as those losses are not significant, the Bengals have managed to dig themselves out of those holes.
For a team full of offensive weapons and highlight reel plays, Cincinnati have not fared well in the TV spotlight, losing an NFL record 12 consecutive primetime road games.
Their pass defence, which only allowed 124 yards in a victory over the Falcons last Sunday, have played the cover game as well as their coach could ask for, allowing a QB rating of only 75.2, conceding 6.2 yards per attempt and a completion percentage of 56.9.
Combine that with a 29.1% pressure rating in 2022, and you can see why this team is starting to come to life, as they are looking like a Super Bowl contender.
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Team News
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Cleveland running back Nick Chubb leads the NFL in rushing with 740 yards on the ground this season, averaging 105.7 yards per game in 2022 as the Browns are 0-5 when he has fewer than 20 carries in the backfield, while their two wins occurred when he ran the ball over 20 times.
Jacoby Brissett averaged 9.6 yards through the air last week, with a rating of 106.5, well above his 2022 average of 82.3, while Amari Cooper had three receptions on four targets for 74 yards.
Donovan Peoples-Jones, meanwhile caught all six passes thrown his way against the Baltimore Ravens for 71 yards.
Jadeveon Clowney could miss this game with an ankle issue, Myles Garrett has a problem with his shoulder, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is dealing with a sore knee and Denzel Ward did not practice this week because of a concussion.
Bengals QB Joe Burrow threw for 481 yards and three touchdowns, with a rating of 138.2 in Week 7, Ja'Marr Chase is fifth in receiving with 47 receptions for 605 yards, but he is reportedly out of this game with a hip injury, which means Tyler Boyd could be targeted more on Monday and he is coming off an eight catch, 155-yard performance a week ago, which included a major score.
Tee Higgins has 455 yards receiving this season on 31 receptions, Joe Mixon will look to improve on his 3.3-yard average running the ball and Chidobe Awuzie has a rating against of 55.6 and has only allowed quarterbacks to complete 44% of their passes.
La'el Collins did not practice this week because of a sore ankle, Trey Hendrickson has a problem with his neck, Stanley Morgan has a hamstring strain, Josh Tupou is suffering from a calf issue and Eli Apple continues to deal with a hamstring injury.
Head To Head
The Browns have captured seven of the last eight battles against their state rivals, including in January of this year, when they won 21-16.
One of the most memorable encounters between these two foes recently came in 2020, when Peoples-Jones caught a 24-yard TD pass from Baker Mayfield to give Cleveland a 37-34 victory.
Overall, the Bengals lead the season series 51-46, with their last victory in Cleveland coming in 2017 (31-7).
We say: Cleveland Browns 24-36 Cincinnati Bengals
Even without Ja'Marr Chase, this Bengals offence is on fire now, with nearly everyone in the receiving corps contributing.
On the opposite side, the Browns have played the pass well but being adequate against a quarterback with the vision and arm strength of Burrow is not usually good enough to slow him or his offence down.
Joel Lefevre
