NFL Week 17 Best Bets: New York Jets vs Cleveland Browns Picks for Thursday Night Football
NFL Week 17 kicks off tonight with Breece Hall and the New York Jets traveling to Ohio to take on Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns. The Jets are simply playing for pride, but the Browns can officially clinch a playoff spot with a win and you know they would love to keep moving forward and lock in that No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs. This is setting up to be quite the defensive battle as the Browns defense has been a stalwart all season long while the Jets boast one of the top pass defenses in the league. How will that affect journeyman Joe Flacco who once played for these same Jets? How does that affect how we bet this game? We'll give you our pocks against the spread and a few player props to keep you interested in the whole game, so buckle up and get ready. Let's get to it!
NFL Week 17 Thursday Night Football Best Bets: New York Jets vs Cleveland Browns
The Spread: Browns -7.5
The Browns have all the motivation on their side as they can lock up that fifth-seed in the playoffs, but this game really profiles as a strong defensive battle. Even without safety Grant Delpit, this Browns defense is fierce with Garrett, Denzel Ward and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. With Trevor Siemian under center, the Jets are going to have to rely heavily on Hall, not just running up the gut, but also in the short-passing game in an effort to neutralize the pass rush. It will be an incredible battle to watch, especially after Hall's performance last week. For the Browns, offensively, they're going to need to attack the Jets on the ground early with the hopes of setting up play-action. But will Flacco be chucking the ball all over the place? I'm not so sure. Not with these cover-corners and the fact that Amari Cooper is coming off a career-best week but has been limited by a heel injury all week. I'm taking the Browns to win this game, but I think we're looking at a close one here, so I want the points in this one. More than a touchdowns seems like a lot here.
Pick: Jets +7.5 (-110)
The Total: 34
With the game being a close one, I think we actually see a little more scoring than we would think with these two teams. There's a lot at stake for the Browns and the Jets aren't going to just roll over in this one. I'm not saying this is going to be an action-packed game that has you on the edge of your seat, but this definitely has some 23-17 vibes to me. Maybe the Browns dominate early and take their foot off the gas in this one, but the point total just seems incredibly low, especially when the over is 4-1 over the last five Browns games and 3-2 over the last five for New York.
Pick: Over 34 (-110)
Favorite Thursday Night Football Player Props:
- Joe Flacco under 36.5 pass attempts (-130)
- Amari Cooper under 57.5 receiving yards (-110)
- Breece Hall over 31.5 receiving yards (-110)
- Tyler Conklin over 3.5 receptions (+110)
**all lines & odds courtesy of BetMGM
Player News
Dolphins signed No. 13 overall pick DT Kenneth Grant to a four-year contract.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that Grant will sign his contract today. The former Michigan defensive tackle is expected to fill a major void left by Christian Wilkins, who left for the Raiders in the 2024 offseason. Grant totaled 32 tackles, three sacks, and seven TFLs in his final season at Michigan and excelled at stopping the run while also generating 27 pressures in his final season, per PFF.
Beat reporter John Hendrix reports that free agent WR Donovan Peoples-Jones is among the 16 players that the Saints will host for their rookie minicamp.
Peoples-Jones last played regular season snaps with the Lions back in 2023, when he caught 13-of-24 targets for 155 yards. He is highly unlikely to return to fantasy relevance at this point but could perhaps sign on as a special teams contributor.
Titans signed fourth-round pick WR Elic Ayomanor to a four-year contract.
Ayomanor will now begin learning behind Calvin Ridley. Although Ayomanor is unlikely to find a meaningful role in year one, dynasty managers should note his status as training camp gets underway this summer. The former Stanford receiver flashed big-play ability in his two college seasons.
Buccaneers signed seventh-round pick WR Tez Johnson to a four-year contract.
Johnson will serve as a rotational deep-threat option for Baker Mayfield. His thin frame (5'10/154) simply does not lend itself to the repeated hits one incurs in a full-time role. Johnson did earn 100-plus targets in his two seasons at Oregon, though. His big-play style make him a better fit in best ball for now, pending any major on-field breakthroughs.
Giants waived DT Casey Rogers.
Rogers was a 2024 undrafted free agent and logged 33 defensive snaps for the Giants in his rookie season. He is credited with zero tackles and/or sacks. He may find his way onto another roster as a practice squad option.
Vikings signed third-round pick WR Tai Felton to a four-year contract.
Felton is quietly in play to challenge Vikings No. 3 WR Jalen Nailor in training camp. Nailor (5'11/190) caught 28-of-42 targets for 414 yards and six touchdowns in his first season as a starter last year, with the latter category buoying his fantasy productivity. Felton (6'1/183), meanwhile, caught 96-of-143 targets for 1,119 yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 2.32 yards per route run in his final college season. Fantasy managers should monitor Felton’s training camp reports this summer, as he could have a matchup-based WR5 role if everything falls into place.