Browns vs. Falcons: NFL preseason betting odds, preview, and pick

The Cleveland Browns will close out their NFL preseason slate on Sunday night, when they travel to Atlanta to face off with the Falcons.

Browns plan to play their starters

Given the injury issues that plagued the Browns’ training camp last year, it is an odd decision for head coach Kevin Stefanski to come out this week and state that the majority of starters would play against the Falcons. This includes starting quarterback Baker Mayfield, who was rested for both of the first two preseason contests, as were many other starters.

Whereas most teams plan for their starters to rest in the final preseason game due to the lengthened season, the Browns will go the opposite direction. It has many fans leery of Mayfield getting through his series without injury, and hoping that they can head into Week 1 with the Chiefs with the entire roster healthy.

The Browns do have some key decisions to make in terms of roster cuts, especially at linebacker and defensive tackle, so there will be reasons for some players to try their hardest on Sunday night. Perhaps the biggest will be free agent signing Malik McDowell, who performed very well against the Giants last weekend—his first on-field action in over four years—and is making a late push to make the roster.

Falcons planning to play nearly everyone on the roster

Meanwhile, Falcons’ head coach Arthur Smith said he will decide for certain on Saturday, but he is planning to see snaps from every player on his roster in this game. The only two players he is considering resting completely are quarterback Matt Ryan and rookie tight end Kyle Pitts, clearly the most important players on the offensive side of the ball.

Pitts has yet to see the field in an actual game this preseason, leaving many fans hoping they will finally get to see him line up on Sunday night. Meanwhile, playing Ryan would be a massive risk after backup A.J. McCarron suffered a season-ending knee injury in their game against the Dolphins last weekend, leaving only rookie Feleipe Franks and veteran Josh Rosen as relief. Rosen was signed just this week and is expected to play.

The Falcons also still have many battles to be decided, including who will be the No. 2 cornerback, and who will start at left guard. The guard battle might be the most important, given how vital it is that Ryan is kept protected this season.

Browns and Falcons Trends

• The Browns are 5-0 straight-up in their last five road games in Atlanta
• The Browns are 4-1 straight-up in their last five games
• The Falcons are winless in their last seven games overall
• The Under is 5-2 in Cleveland’s last seven games
• The Under is 10-5 in Atlanta’s last 15 games

Atlanta will miss Ryan and Pitts

Despite resting their starters nearly the entire preseason, the Browns have won both of their games. Their roster is deeper than Atlanta’s and allowing the starters to have a few series could see this game get away from the Falcons early on.

Not having Ryan or Pitts also makes it even harder for the Falcons to move the ball, not to mention they will be breaking in a new quarterback for much of the game in Rosen. I’m not sure the Falcons starters would beat the Cleveland backups right now without Ryan and Pitts, and I sure don’t think they’ll beat Cleveland’s starters. Take the Browns and lay the points.

Score prediction: Cleveland 27, Atlanta 10

NFL Preseason Pick: BROWNS -5.5