Much of that price comes from what Houston's pass rush just did. The Texans sacked Justin Herbert 8 times, with Will Anderson, Sheldon Rankins and Jadeveon Clowney getting 2 each. Keep it in perspective, though: the Chargers are 0-8 and had gone 37 straight drives without a touchdown before a late Quentin Johnston score. Cleveland's protection, missing its center, is the next test, and it should be a tougher one.
Cleveland's problem is points. Over the last 5 the Browns have scored 12, 13, 27, 6 and 22, so the defense has been winning games mostly on its own, including the 13-10 home win over Baltimore. The Saints loss showed the other side of that. The offense came alive late, with Sanders hitting KC Concepcion for 64 yards near the end of regulation and Harold Fannin Jr. for 39 in overtime, but New Orleans stopped the 2-point try and won 23-22. Houston's last 5 went the other way: 26 points or more in 4 of them, including a 34-31 shootout in Jacksonville.
Weather could matter too. The early forecast for Huntington Bank Field is 43 degrees, cloudy, with 16 mph wind off the lake, which can turn a deep shot into a punt. Kickoff is 1:00 PM ET. Cleveland goes into its bye after this one, and with 2 straight losses it would rather not spend the week off at .500. Houston is still 2 games under .500 itself and can't treat a 44-point blowout of a winless team as a turnaround yet.
