The Browns travel to face last year’s Superbowl champs, the Kansas City Chiefs, in what is sure to be an entertaining divisional playoff showdown. Kickoff time is set for 3:05 pm on Sunday, the 17th of January, 2021.
Ahead of the game, BetOnline has the Chiefs as double-digit points favorites on the spread (with -10 at -108). The Browns are also the underdogs on the moneyline with odds of +395 against the Chiefs’ -500.
This exciting bout is set to take place at Arrowhead Stadium – home to the Kansas City Chiefs. You can catch the game on the NFL Network or CBS.
See BetOnline for updated lines and odds.
Cleveland Browns Betting News
The Browns have grossly overachieved this season, notching an outstanding 12-5 record for their efforts. After winning their first playoff game since 1995 against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL Wild Card Round, Cleveland’s team will look to stretch their historic run with a win against the reigning Superbowl champions on Sunday.
This game will mark the first-ever time that both of these teams clash in the playoffs, and with an opportunity to make history on the line, it’ll be interesting to see how the Browns mostly can deal with the mounting pressure.
Saying that the Browns beat the Steelers last Sunday would be a cruel understatement – they absolutely battered their opponents. That game saw the Browns manage their highest ever points tally in a single postseason game since their 56-10 win over the Detroit Lions in the 1954 NFL Championship Game.
In an excellent example of opportunistic play, the Browns managed to force five turnovers from the Steelers. They picked off the opposing quarterback Ben Roethlisberger an astonishing four times in a game that saw Browns Safety Karl Joseph recover a Steelers fumble for the game’s first touchdown.
The Browns’ quarterback Baker Mayfield was in inspired form, passing for 263 yards and scoring three touchdowns. Beyond that, however, the excellent play permeated the entire Browns offense, with Nick Chubb rushing for 76 yards and Kareem hunt running for two touchdowns.
If nothing else, as underdogs, the Browns are adequately primed and sufficiently motivated to give the Chiefs a run for their money on Sunday.
Kansas City Chiefs Betting News
The Chiefs, for their part, have picked up where they left off with their conquest of the NFL last season. The reigning Superbowl champs have managed an impressive 14-2 record this season.
Importantly, however, this is the third successive season where the Chiefs, led by the sensational quarterback Patrick Mahomes, have managed a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Historically, the layoff has served the Chiefs well in both prior seasons, as they have won and covered the spread in the corresponding Divisional playoff games. 2018 saw them orchestrate a 31-13 thrashing of the Indiana Colts, and 2019 played host to an incredible 51-31 victory over the Houston Texans one the way to their first Superbowl title since 1970.
Betting Information on the Game
The Browns took to the field against the Steelers without head coach Kevin Stefanski (COVID-related absence). Barring any last-minute developments, it looks like Mike Priefer will also serve as acting head coach on Sunday. Also, Michael Dunn, at left guard, suffered a calf injury against the Steelers and has been listed as questionable. Right tackle Jack Conklin also leaped off the field with a knee injury and his availability come Sunday is uncertain.
On the Chiefs side of things, six starters have been listed as questionable ahead of the game. Running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (hip injury), wide receivers Tyreek Hill (hamstring) and Sammy Watkins (calf injury), and right tackle Mike Remmers (concussion) are the offensive absentees. In the defense, the potential absent starters include linebackers Ben Niemann (hamstring tear) and Willie Gay (ankle injury).
The Browns have an 11-0 record when winning or tying in the turnover tally. This fact might well play into the in-game bets. On the other hand, the Chiefs are looking to become only the second team to host three Championship Games on the stretch – the other team being the 2002-2004 Eagles who, coincidentally, also had current Chiefs coach Andy Reid at the helm.
