Chicago Bears at Cleveland Browns Preview

By J.E. | Saturday, October 08, 2005 | ( 0 )

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The Chicago Bears (1-2) visit Ohio to take on the Cleveland Browns (1-2). Kickoff is set for 1:00pm ET at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

With both the Bears and Browns coming in to Sunday's matchup with 1-2 records, this contest is shaping up to be the kind of game that can turn the winning team's season around. There's a big difference between being 2-2 and being 1-3 heading in to Week 6 in the NFL. Neither team wants to have to climb out of that 1-3 hole.

The Chicago Bears had a bye last week, giving them some extra time to regroup after an eye-opening 24-7 loss to the Bengals back in Week 3. Rookie QB Kyle Orton was picked off 5 times by the Cincinnati defense, and later admitted to being "confused" by the different coverage schemes that he saw. To give the Bears a chance this week, Orton is going to have to do a much better job of making adjustments at the line of scrimmage.

Everyone in the stadium knows the Bears are going to come out and try to run the ball early and often so that Orton won't feel the pressure of having to make big plays. Even so, he's still going to have to throw downfield once in a while to spread the defense a bit. He'll look for WR Muhsin Muhammad, who will try to line up against CB Daylon McCutcheon. If that happens, Muhammad will have a four-inch height advantage and any jump balls should go his way.

Thomas Jones is the workhorse in the Bears' backfield. He has rushed for 276 yards and 4 touchdowns in 3 games this year. He will get most of the carries on Sunday, but the Bears are also going to try to get rookie Cedric Benson into the game more often in order to rest Jones.

The Cleveland Browns are also coming off a bye week. Back in Week 3, they surprised a lot of people by hanging tough in their 13-6 loss against the Colts. Veteran QB Trent Dilfer will lead the offense again this week, with first-round pick Charlie Frye anxiously waiting in the wings. In three games this season, Dilfer has done well enough to keep the starting job for the time being. He has thrown for 822 yards and 4 TDs, for a QB rating of 95.1.

Dilfer will try to get the ball to wide receivers Antonio Bryant and Braylon Edwards. Bryant has 15 receptions for 172 yards on the season, while the rookie Edwards has caught 9 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown. Head coach Romeo Crennel would like to see more discipline out of his receivers. Both Bryant and Edwards were flagged for misconduct penalties in separate incidents in the Indianapolis game.

The Browns' leading rusher is Reuben Droughns. He has gained 204 yards in 3 games so far, but has yet to find the end zone. Third-year man Lee Suggs will also see some carries in an effort to keep Droughns fresh.

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