Why the Chargers Will Beat the Browns, Why They Won’t, and a Prediction

Los Angeles Chargers They don’t have an easy task ahead of them heading into their Week 9 matchup with the Cleveland Browns.

The Browns may be 2-6, but Cleveland comes into the game coming off an upset win over the Baltimore Ravens and appears to have new energy with quarterback Jameis Winston taking over the offense.

Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers, on the other hand, have to travel for kickoff at 1 p.m. ET and still have a slew of injuries to overcome.

Several factors point to a win or loss for the Chargers on the road trip.

The defense, coordinated by Jesse Minter, continues to play high-quality ball and remains healthier for the most part. Joey Bosa needs some work In the 20-snapshot range or more. For all the goodness Winston showed last week, he infamously unstableso the Chargers could produce some mistakes. Justin Herbert’s offense has also started to improve, he is now back from his ankle injury and the skill positions have become healthier. That should help rookie Ladd McConkey continue his breakout, while other free agents plan to get back on the field and help out, too.

Winston is indecisive; For all we know, he’s heading for a five-goal blowout. It’s doubtful, but the Chargers only have a week’s worth of film to watch and the Browns have plenty of good weapons and an elite group of running backs in Nick Chubb. And the Browns defense boasts a strong pass-rushing corps led by Myles Garrett. Yes, Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater make a great duo in front of Herbert, but they often don’t get to see a player like Garrett.

It’s hard to buy the Browns as an immediate threat, and their win over Baltimore last week can be boiled down to the element of surprise (Winston) and the division game where strange things happen. The Chargers’ defense continues to excel on Sunday, and it should, while its offense continues to open up as Herbert and other players become healthier in the new system. A few Winston mistakes should make the difference.

Final score: Chargers 27, Browns 14

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