Team Profile
Cleveland Browns
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-31.8% 29thOff DVOA
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-43.7% 31stPassing DVOA
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-3.3% 19thRushing DVOA
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-2.4% 12thDef DVOA
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-7.6% 10thDef Passing DVOA
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4.2% 25thDef Rushing DVOA
2024 Team Stats
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Points For17.5 23rd
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Points Against23.0 21st
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Yards Per Game264.0 28th
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Yards Allowed Per Game294.0 12th
Cleveland Browns running back Jerome Ford carried the ball three times for six yards and added two catches for 26 yards in a 31-14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 18. Ford did not start but he wound up seeing a handful of touches in a final tuneup before the Browns head to Houston to take on the Texans in the Wild Card round of the playoffs next week. The second-year back finishes his 2023 season with nine all-purpose touchdowns although his role next season will depend on how Nick Chubb (knee) progresses in rehabbing his knee injury. Ford will be a solid DFS option next week against Houston.
Cleveland Browns wide receiver Marquise Goodwin (knee) is officially inactive for the Week 18 regular season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals, while Elijah Moore (concussion) is active on Sunday. Both players came into the season finale as questionable to play. Moore suffered a concussion in last Thursday's win over the New York Jets but was able to clear the concussion protocols. The Browns are already locked into the No. 5 seed in the AFC for the postseason, so even though Moore is officially active for this one, there's a good chance he won't play the entire game, especially coming off a head injury just last week. Top wideout Amari Cooper (heel) will miss a second straight game as well, so fantasy managers should expect rookie Cedric Tillman and David Bell to get more playing time on Sunday with quarterback Jeff Driskel leading Cleveland's offense.
Los Angeles Rams running back Royce Freeman has an opportunity to lead the backfield with Kyren Williams being rested. Freeman was given an increased role when Williams went on injured reserve earlier this season and impressed. The 27-year-old has carried the ball 73 times for 317 yards and two touchdowns on the ground this season. He beat out Darrell Henderson Jr. and has proven to be the best pure runner when Williams is out. Facing the San Francisco 49ers in Week 18, consider Freeman as a cheap DFS dart throw and RB4 in fantasy leagues.
Denver Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy was a distant No. 2 receiver behind Courtland Sutton all year and wasn't able to do anything significant (three catches for 54 yards) in the Week 17 win over the Los Angeles Chargers with Sutton out due to a concussion. The former first-rounder has just one touchdown all season long and has been outside the top-50 receivers this year in half-PPR points per game despite ranking 48th at the position with 81 targets. In the Week 18 regular season finale against the Las Vegas Raiders with Sutton returning from his concussion, it's unlikely that Jeudy suddenly breaks out in the final game of the year with quarterback Jarrett Stidham running the offense. Fantasy managers looking for upside in DFS and season-long contests in Week 18 should ignore Jeudy.
New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston has agreed to a contract restructure for salary cap purposes, according to a source. The 30-year-old veteran signal-caller adds two years to his contract, but it won't affect his pending free agency, as they will void early in the new 2024 league year to allow salary cap proration. Winston will hit free agency this March after spending the last four seasons as a backup for the Saints. In that time, he's played in 20 games (10 starts) and has gone 200-for-334 for 2,367 yards with 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. It remains to be seen if he'll be content to re-sign in New Orleans as Derek Carr's backup or if he wants to look elsewhere as a short-term bridge QB option. As a starter, Winston can be intriguing as a QB2 streamer in the right matchups, but his turnover-prone ways make him hard to trust on a week-to-week basis.