The waiting is over, it’s game week number one for the Cleveland Browns and it’s a big one. Dallas Cowboys, afternoon start, Fox national game of the week and Tom Brady’s debut in the booth. Just a normal week one for the Browns. No pressure. The Browns are currently a 2.5-point favorite at home. Last year the Browns were 8-1 at home and the Cowboys were 4-5 on the road. While the national media is focused on the quarterback position, I’m focused on the left tackle position. Jedrick Wills didn’t practice again today, but Jack Conklin did. Looks like he’ll be the team’s starter on Sunday. Head coach Kevin Stefanski said today that Wills was getting closer to practicing and didn’t say if Conklin would start. I originally thought he only played LT his freshman year at Michigan State. Nope, most of his college career. Conklin doesn’t seem to be concerned about playing on the left side, so I won’t either.
The other position I’m worried about is the running back room. Because the Dallas pass rush (Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence) will get a ton of attention in the media, a good run game will help take the pressure off QB Deshaun Watson. Dallas last year finished sixteenth (112.4 yards per game) against the run and fifteenth (4.2 yards) in yards per rushing attempt. If the Browns are able to have their quick passing game working, that will also help. Dallas’s secondary is good but will be missing starting corner DaRon Bland due to injury.
Finally, the anticipation for this game will build every day this week. I know a lot of Browns fans don’t like the 1:00pm EST start time, but I do. The late afternoon games are hell on my nerves. There’s pacing and wondering. The game will be played over and over in my head. The good thing, I’ll be able to test out how I’m going to watch games this year at home. I’m leaning towards Streameast. It worked during the preseason, so hopefully it will work during the regular season. One last reminder, I’ll have my preview article for the game on http://@FansFirstSN. Look for it either Friday or Saturday. Stay safe and Go Browns.