Cleveland Browns at Chicago Bears Preseason NFL Picks & Predictions 8/31/2017

Thursday, August 31, 2017

Soldier Field

Get todays NFL Odds & Lines on this game

The Cleveland Browns travel to Soldier Field to take on the Chicago Bears on Thursday, August 31, 2017. The opening line for this game has Chicago as 3.5 point favorites. The over/under has been set at 37.5. The Browns had an ATS record of 4-12-0 last season while their over/under record was 8-8-0. The Bears had an over/under record of 8-8-0 and they were 7-9-0 against the spread.

Valuable Cleveland Browns Betting Trends

The Cleveland Browns were 8-8-0 against the over/under last season

The Cleveland Browns were 4-12-0 against the spread last year

Important Chicago Bears Betting Trends

The Chicago Bears were 8-8-0 against the over/under last season

The Chicago Bears were 7-9-0 against the spread last year

Key Cleveland Browns Injuries

08/28/17 OL Cameron Erving Calf "?" Sunday vs. Pittsburgh
08/28/17 OL Joel Bitonio Knee "?" Sunday vs. Pittsburgh
08/27/17 QB DeShone Kizer None has been named the starter Sunday vs. Pittsburgh
08/23/17 LB Tank Carder ACL IR
08/18/17 DL Danny Shelton Knee "?" Sunday vs. Pittsburgh

Key Chicago Bears Injuries

08/28/17 LS Patrick Scales Knee out indefinitely
08/28/17 LB Pernell McPhee Knee "?" Sunday vs. Atlanta
08/27/17 WR Cameron Meredith Knee out indefinitely
08/25/17 RB Ka'Deem Carey Wrist expected to miss 6-8 weeks
08/12/17 C Eric Kush Hamstring IR

Useful Offensive Statistics

The Cleveland Browns were 31st in the NFL in points scored with 264 last season. They ran 983 plays last year for 4,976 yards, which ranked them 30th in the league in total offense. The Browns averaged 5.1 yards per play, which was 25th in the National Football League. As a team they accumulated a total of 296 1st downs last year, placing them 26th overall as an offensive unit. On the ground Cleveland ran for 1,712 yards as a team, which ranked 19th in the NFL. They ran 350 times last year, averaging 4.9 yards per carry as a rushing unit. The Browns were penalized on offense 95 times for 736 yards last season, which had them 27th in the league in penalties. DeShone Kizer is expected to be the starting Quarterback for Cleveland. He has really impressed coaches during the offseason and they feel the rookie is ready to start right away.

Defensive Statistics

Cleveland was 30th in the league in points allowed on defense with 452 last year. They surrendered a total of 6,279 yards on D, which was 31st in the NFL. The Browns were ranked 26th in yards per play allowed with 5.9. Their pass defense gave up 7 net yards per pass attempt, placing them 29th in the league as a unit. Opposing offenses completed 347 passes on 543 attempts against the Cleveland Browns defense last season, placing them 13th and 7th in the National Football League. The Cleveland pass defense also gave up a total of 3,996 yards through the air, which was 21st overall in total pass defense. Their rushing defense allowed 498 attempts for 2,283 yards last year, putting them in 31st place in the league against the run. The Browns committed 104 penalties for 930 yards on the defensive side of the ball last season. That ranked them 18th in the NFL. They gave up a score on 40.8% of possessions on defense, which was 27th in the league.

Special Teams Stats

Cleveland was ranked 15th in the league in punt returns last season with 30. They accumulated 200 punt return yards and averaged 6.7 yards per return, which was 26th in the NFL. Their longest punt return last year was 18 yards. They returned 34 kicks for 634 yards on special teams, ranking 18th in kick return yardage. The Browns averaged 18.6 yards per kick return and had a long of 36 yards last year. They were 29th in the league in all-purpose yards with 6,239. The Cleveland Browns attempted 27 field goals last season and made 21, which was 25th in the National Football League. Their kickers had a field goal percentage of 77.8%. Cleveland Browns kickers made 92% of their extra points, going 23 for 25 last year. Their punters totaled 3,762 yards on 83 punts, averaging 30 yards per punt. That placed them 17th in the NFL in punting average.

Useful Offensive Statistics

The Chicago Bears ran for 1,735 yards as a unit last year, which ranked 17th in the league. They ran 380 times, averaging 4.6 yards per rush as a unit. The Bears were penalized on offense 110 times for 967 yards last season, which had them 13th in the NFL in penalties. They were 29th in the National Football League in points scored with 279. They ran 967 plays last year for 5,704 yards, which ranked them 15th in the NFL in total offense. The Bears averaged 5.9 yards per play, which was 6th in the league. As a team they accumulated a total of 324 1st downs last season, ranking them 17th overall as an offensive unit. Mike Glennon completed 10 throws while attempting 11 passes for a completion percentage of 90.9% last year. He passed for 75 yards. He averaged 7.5 yards per completion and 6.8 yards per pass attempt. His quarterback rating last season was 125.4 and his QBR was 96.9.

Defensive Statistics

The Bears rush defense gave up 445 attempts for 1,950 yards last season, putting them in 27th place in the NFL against the run. They had 103 penalties for 959 yards on defense last year. That placed them 22nd in the league. They allowed a score on 42% of possessions on defense, which was 31st in the NFL. Chicago was 24th in the NFL in points surrendered on defense with 399. They gave up a total of 5,548 yards on D, which was 15th in the league. The Bears were 18th in yards per play allowed with 5.5. Their pass defense allowed 6.3 net yards per pass attempt, ranking them 17th in the National Football League. Opponent offenses completed 342 throws on 530 attempts against the Chicago defense last season, ranking them 9th and 4th in the league. The Chicago Bears pass defense also surrendered a total of 3,598 yards in the air, which was 7th overall in total pass defense.

Special Teams Stats

The Chicago Bears tried 23 field goals last season and made 18, which was 30th in the league. Their kickers had a FG percentage of 78.3%. Chicago kickers made 97% of their extra points, going 31 for 32 last season. Their punters accumulated 2,995 yards on 68 punts, averaging 27 yards per punt. That ranked them 25th in the NFL in punting average. Chicago was 24th in the NFL in punt returns with 27 last year. They totaled 215 punt return yards and averaged 8 yards per return, which was 19th in the league. Their longest punt return last season was 65 yards. They returned 42 kicks for 897 yards on special teams, placing them 7th in kick return yardage. The Bears averaged 21.4 yards per kick return and had a long of 64 yards last season. They were 11th in the National Football League in all-purpose yards with 6,986.

Who will win tonight's Browns/Bears NFL game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Browns +3.5

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