Cleveland Browns vs. Baltimore Ravens Betting Odds, Analysis, NFL Pick

The Cleveland Browns will be searching for their first straight-up win on the road in over a year when they visit the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night.

The Browns' season of futility continued last week with a 35-10 loss to Dallas as seven-point home underdogs. Cleveland now sits with an 0-9 record and has lost 12 straight games while going 1-11 against the spread.

The Ravens ended a four-game SU and ATS slide last weekend with a 21-14 win over Pittsburgh as three-point home underdogs. The win lifted Baltimore alongside the Steelers atop the AFC North standings with a 4-4 SU record.

Point spread: The Ravens opened as eight-point favorites; the total was 44 early in the week, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark (line updates and matchup report).

NFL pick, via Odds Shark computer: 33.4-10.2 Ravens (NFL picks on every game)

Why the Browns can cover the spread

The inconsistent Ravens find themselves atop the AFC North despite enduring a recent four-game SU and ATS slide that featured outright losses to both Oakland and Washington as home favorites.

While Baltimore has won 26 straight games when favored by 10 or more at home, they have proved to be a disappointment at the sportsbooks. The Ravens have scored more than 21 points just once in their past five games as double-digit home chalk, dropping them to 1-9 ATS in their past 10 such outings.

Despite their current slide, the Browns' pass defense has shown steady improvement, holding opposing quarterbacks to just 238.5 passing yards per game over their past two games.

Why the Ravens can cover the spread

The Ravens defense showed marked improvement in their victory over the Steelers, limiting Ben Roethlisberger to just 264 passing yards and a minuscule quarterback rating of 14.6. Baltimore also held the Steelers to a season-low 36 rushing yards. That lifted the team's rush defense to No. 2 in the league, surrendering just 76.1 ground yards per game.

Baltimore's win over Pittsburgh also continued its recent stingy play on home turf. The Ravens have held opponents to 17 or fewer points in four of their past six home contests—and four of their eight overall outings this season.

Quarterback issues continue to dog the Browns. Rookie Cody Kessler has performed admirably in six appearances this season, completing over 67 percent of his pass attempts, but he has found the end zone just once in his last two outings.

Smart pick

After opening with nine straight losses, the Browns now sit just one defeat away from their worst start in franchise history, and they have a 3.9 percent chance of going winless on the season, according to PredictionMachine.com.

The Ravens looked back on track against Pittsburgh. However, they have struggled to cover big spreads and are 1-5 ATS in their past six games at home to Cleveland. Look for Baltimore to post the SU victory but come short of covering as double-digit home chalk Thursday night.

Betting trends

The Browns are 5-1 ATS in their last six games on the road against the Ravens.

The total has gone under in four of the Browns' last five games on the road against the Ravens.

The Ravens are 0-5-1 ATS in their last six games at home against teams with losing records.

All NFL betting lines and point-spreads data courtesy of Bleacher Report’s official odds partner, Odds Shark. All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line-movement updates and Odds Shark YouTube for picks and analysis, or download the free odds-tracker app.