EverBank Field Jacksonville

Cleveland Browns vs. Jacksonville Jaguars Pick & Prediction AUG 14TH 2021

NFL | FOOTBALL

Aug 14 07:00 PM

TV:

OPENNER

37.5

4 -110

CURRENT

37.5o -110

+170

MONEYLINE

-200

SCORE

Football is finally here, and we get to see the #1 NFL draft pick in action for the first time in his new threads going against a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Trevor Lawrence will look to make a statement in the QB “battle” going on in Jacksonville, and the Cleveland Browns will likely allow him to do just that with a veteran team that doesn’t need many reps.

Best Betting Sites

The preseason is time for teams to find out what they have in various ways, whether that means finding out whether QB1 is ready for the big lights or if the UDFA should get a spot on the 53-man roster. Determining what each team’s goal is will be huge here.

Browns vs. Jaguars Preseason Odds

TV: NFL Network

MONEY LINE: Browns (+130) vs. Jaguars (-150)

SPREAD: Browns +3 (-120) vs. Jaguars -3 (+100)

GAME TOTAL: Over 37 (-105) vs. Under 37 (-115)

NFL ML Odds

Browns vs. Jaguars Preview and Trends

This is a clash of two teams in two completely different places as a franchise, and it will be very important to realize this while betting on this game. While we don’t have full clarity on who will play for each team and for how long, it is safe to assume that the Jaguars will be more likely to run their players out there for more plays to get more practice. This is a new regime, and they are taking over a team of guys that they didn’t pick.

They need to evaluate each player as much as possible leading up to the season, and there is no better way than on live television, right? I think that means we see Minshew and Lawrence play 3ish quarters in this game, which is a huge deal in these preseason games.

In these early preseason games, the teams with more competent QB play are the teams that win. Lawrence and Minshew for the majority of the game are clearly better than Baker for a series or 2, Keenum for a quarter or so, and a half from Kyle Lauletta. Maybe this playing time distribution will be slightly different, but I think that the Browns know who both Baker and Keenum are as players and don’t need them to prove much. They could want more playing time to build cohesiveness, but this team has remained relatively unchanged over the last year.

I’d expect the top half of the roster to play plenty for Jacksonville if they actually have any intention of having a QB battle or if they want to get more live evaluations for their roster management needs. I expect them to play players like Laviska Shenault more than most teams would use a clear starter. This assumption is what I will go by until we hear differently from the coaching staff. We can also tell that Vegas is thinking similarly. The Jaguars are 3-point favorites when they have the lesser roster by far. I expect the Jaguars to win this one and cover the spread.

NFL ML Picks