There are advantages to the Thursday night game and the short week that comes with it. If you are coming off a bad loss (see: Broncos and Browns), it’s good to get back out there and wash out the taste of a poor Sunday performance.
There are also disadvantages, like injuries that can’t heal in four short days.
Denver Broncos
It was set up to be a perfect weekend in Denver. The weather was great, there were weekend ceremonies to honor former head coach Mike Shanahan and new Hall of Famer Steve Atwater, and the team everyone in Broncosland likes to beat, the Raiders, were in town.
The weather did stay nice. Two Denver sports legends were honored. But the current Broncos lost for the third time in a row, and the fans that didn’t decide to leave early stayed around and booed.
This is exactly a scenario in which you want a Thursday game. Get back out there, get back to winning, and pretend like that bad dream of a game never happened.
Unfortunately, they will be back out there on Thursday without leading tackler Alexander Johnson. Thursday, Sunday, three weeks from now – it doesn’t matter. He’s done for the season with a pectoral muscle tear – the second Broncos inside linebacker to be lost for the season because of this same injury. Backup linebacker Baron Browning is also out because of a concussion.
Cleveland Browns
It’s almost an identical scenario for the Browns. A year removed from making the playoffs, the Browns were supposed to be taking the next step with one of the best defenses in football. Instead, they were torched for 47 points by the Chargers in Week 5, and then they looked silly in Week 6 trying to slow down the Cardinals and Kyler Murray.
Cleveland needs a palate cleanser just as badly as the Broncos and will be looking for it with even more injuries to deal with.
Running back Nick Chubb missed Sunday’s game, and he remains doubtful for Thursday’s game. Making matters worse, Cleveland’s other stud running back, Kareem Hunt, suffered a calf injury that will knock him out for at least a month. Add in a high-ankle sprain for linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah that will sideline him for at least a month, and the Browns are indeed hurting.
And none of that includes the separated shoulder that quarterback Baker Mayfield plans to play through.
Betting Picks
Broncos (+4.5)
Along with all of the other injuries, Cleveland is also down both starting tackles. One of the problems for the Broncos against Las Vegas was the inability to rush the passer. That improves significantly against the Browns, and that, coupled with the Chubb and Hunt injuries, keeps the Broncos to within a field goal if they don’t outright win.
Under 43.5
Cleveland has scored 14 points or less in two of its last three games. The Broncos have averaged 16 points per game during their three-game losing streak.
This is a 20-17 type of game that will stay under 44 total points.