Photos by Getty Images. Pictured (left): Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes, left, and Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield.
The Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs will rematch last season’s AFC divisional round playoff game when they meet next Sunday in Missouri.
Currently, the Browns sits at +220 moneyline odds and 6-point underdogs at DraftKings to enact revenge on the team that knocked them out of last year’s playoffs. The Chiefs’ ML is -275 with a -6 spread (-115). The game total stands at 53 (-110).
The Chiefs had been -475 favorites during their playoff game in January. Kansas City was also a 9.5-point favorite. The Browns were +380 to pull off the upset.
Kansas City dominated the game until quarterback Patrick Mahomes was forced to exit due to a concussion while they were up 22-10 in the third quarter.
After Cleveland scored a touchdown to make it 22-17 with 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Mahomes’ replacement Chad Henne threw an interception to give the Browns a chance to take the lead.
Cleveland was forced to punt on that drive with about four minutes to go.
The following Henne drive contained one of the best playoff moments in recent memory. The then-35-year-old backup converted a crucial third down before encountering another one — 3rd and 14 — directly after the two-minute warning.
Henne then scrambled for 13 yards on a broken play to make it 4th and 1, putting his entire body on the line in the process. For reference, he had previously rushed for -4 yards since the 2014 season.
Then, on 4th and 1 with a minute to go and no Browns timeouts remaining, color commentator Tony Romo said the Chiefs were lining up just to try to induce Cleveland into jumping offsides.
“There’s no play, just look at the body language!” Romo said on the CBS broadcast.
The Chiefs then snapped the ball out of the gun and Henne hit a slanting Tyreek Hill for the first down — again, on 4th and 1 — to take Kansas City to the AFC Championship Game.
The rematch surely won’t have the same stakes, but there’s no doubt that game be fresh on the minds of everyone participating next Sunday.
Below is a list of alternate spreads provided by DraftKings for the Week 1 opener.
Browns v. Chiefs Alternate Spread Lines
Odds are according to DraftKings as of Sunday
| Spread | Odds |
|---|---|
| Browns +2 | +190 |
| Chiefs -2 | -255 |
| Browns +2.5 | +175 |
| Chiefs -2.5 | -225 |
| Browns +3 | +155 |
| Chiefs -3 | -195 |
| Browns +3.5 | +130 |
| Chiefs -3.5 | -160 |
| Browns +4 | +125 |
| Chiefs -4 | -155 |
| Browns +4.5 | +115 |
| Chiefs -4.5 | -145 |
| Browns +5 | +110 |
| Chiefs -5 | -140 |
| Browns +5.5 | +100 |
| Chiefs -5.5 | -130 |
| Browns +6.5 | -120 |
| Chiefs -6.5 | -110 |
| Browns +7 | -135 |
| Chiefs -7 | +105 |
| Browns +7.5 | -145 |
| Chiefs -7.5 | +115 |
| Browns +8 | -155 |
| Chiefs -8 | +125 |
| Browns +8.5 | -160 |
| Chiefs -8.5 | +130 |
| Browns +9 | -170 |
| Chiefs -9 | +140 |
| Browns +9.5 | -170 |
| Chiefs -9.5 | +140 |
| Browns +10 | -200 |
| Chiefs -10 | +160 |
And here is a list of alternate totals also provided by DraftKings.
Browns vs. Chiefs Alternate Totals
| Totals | Odds |
|---|---|
| Over 48 | -185 |
| Under 48 | +150 |
| Over 48.5 | -175 |
| Under 48.5 | +145 |
| Over 49 | -170 |
| Under 49 | +140 |
| Over 49.5 | -160 |
| Under 49.5 | +130 |
| Over 50 | -155 |
| Under 50 | +125 |
| Over 50.5 | -145 |
| Under 50.5 | +115 |
| Over 51 | -145 |
| Under 51 | +110 |
| Over 51.5 | -140 |
| Under 51.5 | +100 |
| Over 52 | -125 |
| Under 52 | -105 |
| Over 52.5 | -120 |
| Under 52.5 | -110 |
| Over 53 | -120 |
| Under 53 | -110 |
| Over 53.5 | -110 |
| Under 53.5 | -120 |
| Over 54 | +100 |
| Under 54 | -130 |
| Over 54.5 | +105 |
| Under 54.5 | -135 |
| Over 55 | +110 |
| Under 55 | -140 |
| Over 55.5 | +120 |
| Under 55.5 | -150 |
The Browns improved their secondary immensely this offseason, with the drafting of former Northwestern cornerback Greg Newsome II in the first round, as well as the signing of John Johnson III and Troy Hill.
Johnson and Hill had comprised of 40% of the Rams’ secondary, which ranked as one of the best in the NFL in 2020.
Beyond that, Cleveland also improved its linebacking corps by trading up for former Notre Dame linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and signing former Colts linebacker Anthony Walker.
On offense, the usual suspects are in the offing, with Jarvis Landry, Odell Beckham Jr., Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt anchoring the skill positions. Baker Mayfield is also coming off a season in which he threw for more than 3,500 yards, with 26 touchdowns and only eight interceptions.
The Chiefs will feature a heavily ramped up offensive line relative to last season. They traded for All-Pro tackle Orlando Brown Jr. and signed Joe Thuney to be their starting left guard at five-years, $80 million. And, they’ll be returning Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, who took off the 2020 season in order to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Duvernay-Tardif graduated from medical school in 2018.
That improved offensive line will be a welcomed addition to Mahomes, who along with Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman and Clyde Edwards-Helaire made up the best offense in the NFL in 2020.
