Multiple Experts Predict Browns to Upset Jaguars in NFL Week 1

Week 1 of the NFL season has started, with the Seattle Seahawks taking down the New England Patriots.

Now, the first Sunday of the season will be coming up, giving almost every other team a chance to open the year. The Cleveland Browns will be taking on the Jacksonville Jaguars on opening day, giving the team a good challenge early in the season.

Jacksonville was one of the better teams in the AFC a year ago, while Cleveland was toward the bottom of the standings. The Jaguars are favored entering the contest, but the Browns could have some tricks up their sleeve.

Veteran Deshaun Watson will be the starting quarterback for the Browns, and he will be making his return from injury. If Watson can play well enough against a tough Jaguars defense, Cleveland may have a chance to pull off the win.

Bleacher Report's NFL Staff predicted every game on the Week 1 schedule, with multiple people making picks. Within this, three of the experts picked Cleveland to pull off the upset over the Jaguars in Week 1.

Kristopher Knox, Brent Sobleski, and Ian Hanford were the three from the NFL staff to take the Browns.

Much of the reasoning had to do with the Browns defense still being solid, even without Myles Garrett for the first time since 2017. Cleveland has the capability to slow down the Jaguars offense, giving Trever Lawrence and company some trouble.

The Browns defense allows them to at least stay in any game, and then the offense will have to do its part to close it out. Cleveland won a few games last season that they probably shouldn't have, due to the stellar play from the defensive unit.

Against Jacksonville, the Browns will have to focus on slowing down the passing attack. The Jaguars do an excellent job getting their wide receivers out in space, and the Browns will need to make sure to put pressure on Lawrence throughout the contest.

On offense, Watson is going to need to limit turnovers against a Jaguars defense that excelled at taking the ball away last season. Since he hasn't played in over a year, Watson could be a little rusty early on.

It will be up to head coach Todd Monken to get Watson going in a groove, giving him some easy pass opportunities early in the game. Monken will be making his NFL head coaching debut in this matchup, adding more intrigue all around.

The Browns and Jaguars will kick off at 10:00 a.m. PT/1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday.