NYGiants/Cleveland NFLX Selection
UNDER 35
Romeo Crennel makes his debut as the Cleveland Browns head coach on Saturday night, as his team plays host to the New York Giants in a preseason opener for both squads. Crennel takes over a team that slipped to 4-12 and into the AFC North cellar last season. Crennel is not a complete stranger to this team, as served as the Browns defensive coordinator during the 2000 season. He held the same spot in New England from 2001 through 2004.
Cleveland will be working with a number of new faces on the offensive side of the ball, and not all of the marquee names are expected to appear on Saturday. Running back Reuben Droughns, who was acquired in the offseason after a 1,000-yard season in Denver, is nursing a sore hamstring and will be held out. At receiver, first-round draft choice Braylon Edwards held out of training camp due to contract negotiations until late Thursday. At quarterback, projected starter Trent Dilfer will appear in a Browns uniform for the first time, before yielding to backups Doug Johnson, Charlie Frye and Josh Davis, who also have never played for Cleveland.
The Giants and their fans will be eager to see improvement from quarterback Eli Manning, who went 1-6 as a starter in his rookie season of 2004, but the first unit is not expected to play more than 12-15 snaps before yielding to backups. Jesse Palmer will be the first quarterback in after Manning departs, and offseason acquisition Tim Hasselbeck should follow Palmer. Word is that Manning has not been setting the world on fire thus far in camp.
Coach Crennel, who ran Bill Belichick's defense in New England the past five years is switching Cleveland's defensive scheme to a 3-4. While his offense may be shaky for awhile, we expect to see immediate improvement from the defense. With neither offense looking like they’re in a good spot here, we look for a low-scoring game dominated by the defenses. Additionally, we note that Saturday home underdogs have seen the total go UNDER in 12 of the last 16 such games, and we look for a similar outcome here.