The Cleveland Browns haven’t been very good at football in recent years. The 2017 edition of the team failed to win a single game while taking on 16 losses and, prior to that, the Browns posted a combined 4-28 record in 2015 and 2016. However, the Browns added considerable talent in the offseason and that has helped to produce buzz that Cleveland may not be abjectly terrible on the field in 2018.
With that said, there is something weird happening in Las Vegas and David Purdum of ESPN shed a bit of light on Tuesday. In short, the Browns are attracting a lot of attention from handicappers in the city, which doesn’t make a ton of sense given the franchise’s recent track record.
The ESPN report cited a sportsbook manager for Caesars Palace — which isn’t the only venue seeing increased action on Cleveland — as saying that “there are more bets on the Browns to win the AFC North than the other three teams combined.” MGM vice president of race and sports Jay Rood told ESPN that the Browns are the “only liability” for the casino right now through the lens of the always popular Super Bowl future bets.
It has to be said that most people likely don’t believe the Browns will win the AFC North, much less the Super Bowl. After all, Cleveland’s over/under season win total is still widely set at six games (even after optimistic action on the over) and the presence of No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield likely isn’t enough to transform the Browns into full-fledged contenders in just one season.
With that on the table, the effect of Hard Knocks featuring the Browns may be in play here, as many fans from coast to coast have been exposed to Cleveland’s interesting personalities and young talent in documentary form. That probably wouldn’t explain all of the juice on the Browns right now but, when combined with the “lovable loser” tag, the presence of Mayfield, and a veteran infusion including Jarvis Landry and Tyrod Taylor, it might just be fun to invest in Cleveland right now.
It is entirely possible that the Browns will stun the world and produce something approaching a .500 season in 2018. If that happens, however, it appears Las Vegas will take a hit and those who chose to back Cleveland in the betting market will be patting themselves on the back for their optimism.
