Friday's Top Parlay
August 17, 2018
By Tom Wilkinson
NFL Preseason Betting – Bills vs. Browns
The Buffalo Bills visit the Cleveland Browns on Friday night in a game that can be seen on NFL Network. This game has some intrigue surrounding it, as Cleveland’s starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor was the Buffalo starter last season. Starters for both teams should see more action than a week ago but it is still the second preseason game, so starters probably won’t go much more than a quarter. Let’s look at Friday’s game and NFL picks.
Buffalo Bills vs. Cleveland Browns
Date and Time: Friday, August 17, 2018, 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: FirstEnergy Field, Cleveland, OH
NFL Odds: Browns -3 (-120), O/U 40.5
Bills vs. Browns TV Coverage: NFL Network
The Bills lost to Carolina in Week 1 of the preseason, while the Browns beat the Giants. The Bills have a battle for the starting quarterback job between AJ McCarron, Nathan Peterman and Josh Allen. None of the three have separated themselves so far. Last week it was Peterman getting the start followed by McCarron and Allen. This week should be different. There is a good chance that this week it will be McCarron getting the start. Allen has been practicing with the second team this week so he figures to follow, and it should be Peterman in the latter part of the game.
On the other side, the Browns don’t have a quarterback battle despite what fans think, as Taylor is the clear starter. There is no question that Baker Mayfield is the future, but right now Taylor is going to start. The question that has come up this week is whether or not Mayfield will be the backup to start the regular season. The Browns also have Drew Stanton and he is a capable NFL backup quarterback. Mayfield looked great last week and it could be that the Browns are making a mistake by awarding Taylor the starting job this early, but there is no controversy in Cleveland, at least among the players.
Taylor is expected to play about a quarter on Friday with Mayfield getting two quarters. Stanton is also expected to play. Taylor will have some extra motivation going against his former team. “Definitely how I think it ended there, it’s motivation for this year,” Taylor said to the media on Tuesday.
Player to Watch
It is hard not to focus in on Mayfield, especially after how well he played last week. The fans are already calling for Mayfield to get the starting job, but that is not going to happen right now. Mayfield realizes the situation and he also understands Taylor is a proven quarterback. “You hear (offensive coordinator Todd) Haley talk about not being a yo-yo guy. You want to be consistent,’” Mayfield said to the media, “And Ty really, really is the example of that. He’s the same guy every day. You know exactly what you’re going to get out of him, and that’s important for our guys to see that. They see the standard. They see the expectations, and he lives up to it every day.” Taylor played well last week, going 5-of-5 for 99 yards and a TD, but Mayfield made big plays and showed his ability.
Key Stats
As I have said before when it comes to the preseason, the only numbers I really look at are coaches’ records. McDermott was 1-3 in the preseason a year ago with the Bills and Buffalo is 0-1 this season. Hue Jackson is a bad head coach but after going 0-4 in his first two preseasons as head coach, he went 4-0 last season with the Browns.
Bills vs. Browns Picks
I think this line is inflated simply because of what the Browns did last week. These are two very evenly matched teams and home field doesn’t mean much in the preseason. It is also worth noting that in Week 2 of the preseason, teams coming off a loss facing a team coming off a win have been an excellent bet. I will take the points and go with the Bills on Friday night.
Bills vs. Browns Pick: Buffalo +3 and Over 40.5
Bills vs. Browns Score Prediction: Bills 23, Browns 20
August 17, 2018
By Tom Wilkinson
NFL Preseason Betting – Bills vs. Browns
The Buffalo Bills visit the Cleveland Browns on Friday night in a game that can be seen on NFL Network. This game has some intrigue surrounding it, as Cleveland’s starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor was the Buffalo starter last season. Starters for both teams should see more action than a week ago but it is still the second preseason game, so starters probably won’t go much more than a quarter. Let’s look at Friday’s game and NFL picks.
Buffalo Bills vs. Cleveland Browns
Date and Time: Friday, August 17, 2018, 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: FirstEnergy Field, Cleveland, OH
NFL Odds: Browns -3 (-120), O/U 40.5
Bills vs. Browns TV Coverage: NFL Network
The Bills lost to Carolina in Week 1 of the preseason, while the Browns beat the Giants. The Bills have a battle for the starting quarterback job between AJ McCarron, Nathan Peterman and Josh Allen. None of the three have separated themselves so far. Last week it was Peterman getting the start followed by McCarron and Allen. This week should be different. There is a good chance that this week it will be McCarron getting the start. Allen has been practicing with the second team this week so he figures to follow, and it should be Peterman in the latter part of the game.
On the other side, the Browns don’t have a quarterback battle despite what fans think, as Taylor is the clear starter. There is no question that Baker Mayfield is the future, but right now Taylor is going to start. The question that has come up this week is whether or not Mayfield will be the backup to start the regular season. The Browns also have Drew Stanton and he is a capable NFL backup quarterback. Mayfield looked great last week and it could be that the Browns are making a mistake by awarding Taylor the starting job this early, but there is no controversy in Cleveland, at least among the players.
Taylor is expected to play about a quarter on Friday with Mayfield getting two quarters. Stanton is also expected to play. Taylor will have some extra motivation going against his former team. “Definitely how I think it ended there, it’s motivation for this year,” Taylor said to the media on Tuesday.
Player to Watch
It is hard not to focus in on Mayfield, especially after how well he played last week. The fans are already calling for Mayfield to get the starting job, but that is not going to happen right now. Mayfield realizes the situation and he also understands Taylor is a proven quarterback. “You hear (offensive coordinator Todd) Haley talk about not being a yo-yo guy. You want to be consistent,’” Mayfield said to the media, “And Ty really, really is the example of that. He’s the same guy every day. You know exactly what you’re going to get out of him, and that’s important for our guys to see that. They see the standard. They see the expectations, and he lives up to it every day.” Taylor played well last week, going 5-of-5 for 99 yards and a TD, but Mayfield made big plays and showed his ability.
Key Stats
As I have said before when it comes to the preseason, the only numbers I really look at are coaches’ records. McDermott was 1-3 in the preseason a year ago with the Bills and Buffalo is 0-1 this season. Hue Jackson is a bad head coach but after going 0-4 in his first two preseasons as head coach, he went 4-0 last season with the Browns.
Bills vs. Browns Picks
I think this line is inflated simply because of what the Browns did last week. These are two very evenly matched teams and home field doesn’t mean much in the preseason. It is also worth noting that in Week 2 of the preseason, teams coming off a loss facing a team coming off a win have been an excellent bet. I will take the points and go with the Bills on Friday night.
Bills vs. Browns Pick: Buffalo +3 and Over 40.5
Bills vs. Browns Score Prediction: Bills 23, Browns 20
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