On Thursday night, the Eagles and Browns will face off in an NFL preseason matchup, with Philadelphia laying more than a field goal at home.
While the Eagles have the more talented roster overall, there are some factors that point to Cleveland being the right side in this game.
This will be the Eagles’ second preseason game, but the third for the Browns, who faced the Jets in the Hall of Fame Game.
While both teams are expected to play their starters in the first half, it’s Cleveland that has the edge in the final two quarters, especially at the quarterback position.
Eagles vs. Browns pick
Jalen Hurts and Marcus Mariota won’t see much, if any, playing time in the second half.
That leaves the Eagles with the uninspiring quarterback duo of Tanner McKee and Ian Book to finish out the game.
The Browns will counter with Joshua Dobbs, Kellen Mond and rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
A fifth-round pick out of UCLA, Thompson-Robinson has looked really good in his first two preseason games, completing more than 80 percent of his passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns.
The other thing to consider is the two teams practiced together all week.
As I pointed out this past Sunday, when I took the Raiders versus the 49ers, most coaches of contending teams take more out of joint practices than preseason games.
I think that will be the case here with the Eagles.
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I like getting more than a field goal in this matchup, with the Browns holding the edge at quarterback in the second half.
I’ll take Cleveland to cover this inflated number.
The pick: Browns +3.5 (-110, BetMGM)
