The Ravens (4-5) will face the Cleveland Browns (2-7) at 4:25 p.m. Sunday at Huntington Bank Field. Here are game predictions from The Banner’s sports staff and a guest picker.

Hard to ‘trap’

Kyle Goon, columnist (8-1): Given how low the Ravens have sunk this season, I might be naive but I refuse to believe Baltimore will be lulled into any sense of false security. The Ravens are finally rolling and they’re closer to the team we expected, but it’s a dogfight for the rest of the season, even if they are favored to win the division by schedule’s end. Furthermore, last season’s excursion to Cleveland was so humiliating it should stand out in a weak November slate as an opportunity for the veterans to get right.

Dillon Gabriel’s arm isn’t strong enough to beat the Ravens on its own. The Browns will need fluky things to happen, like a plus-2 or more in turnover margin. The Ravens haven’t steamrolled on offense lately, but they’ve adjusted enough to run effectively and get shorter routes to Lamar Jackson to compensate for worse protection. As long as the Ravens take care of the ball, and hassle the younger Browns into a turnover or two themselves, Cleveland isn’t good enough to trap them, even on its home turf.

Ravens 27, Browns 13

Getting back to .500

Giana Han, reporter (7-2): In a game that features Dillon Gabriel vs. the Ravens’ defense, and Lamar Jackson vs. the Browns’ defense, I’ll take the Ravens in both matchups. The Ravens’ defense is on the upswing, while Cleveland’s offense is on the struggle bus. Although the Browns’ defense has been elite to start the year, it hasn’t been enough to make up for their offensive shortcomings. And Jackson and his stars are on the rise.

The Ravens often play down to their opponent, but they’re in survival mode and I doubt even the despair in Cleveland will snap them out of it. I don’t know whether I should expect to hear more boos from Browns fans at the end of the game or cheers from the Ravens Flock, which has traveled well this season, overpowering Cleveland’s discontent. With another win, the Ravens would improve to 5-5.

Ravens 30, Browns 17

Ground and pound

Paul Mancano, Banner Ravens Podcast co-host (6-3): Why couldn’t the Ravens run the ball in their Week 2 win over the Browns? Baltimore ball carriers totaled 45 yards on 21 carries in September. It didn’t matter, as the Ravens steamrolled Joe Flacco’s Browns in the fourth quarter to collect a 41-17 win. But a rushing attack that was the envy of the AFC in 2024 has looked less intimidating a year later. If Baltimore can get the ball moving on the ground Sunday, it would take pressure off a passing attack that could be without wideout Rashod Bateman.

Ravens 30, Browns 17

Expecting a fight in Cleveland

Jonas Shaffer, reporter (4-5): The Browns are not a good team, but they can at least look like a decent one in Cleveland. They almost upset the Bengals at home in Week 1, when Joe Burrow and Trey Hendrickson were healthy. They beat the Packers two weeks later. And they hammered the Dolphins in Week 7.

The Ravens have won two straight road games rather handily, but Cleveland’s defense is a tier or two above Miami’s and Minnesota’s. It’s everything else this Browns team is doing that should give the Ravens confidence. Even if Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry struggle, the defense and special teams should be good enough to set the Ravens up for success. I don’t expect another blowout, but it’s hard to imagine the Browns taking a sizable lead at any point.

Ravens 20, Browns 13

No sense in picking an upset

Childs Walker, contributor (6-3): The Ravens haven’t swept their season series against the Browns since 2020, despite being favored almost every time these AFC North foes meet. Cleveland has been particularly inhospitable. Despite the Browns’ overall struggles, their defense remains a top-five unit and gave the Ravens fits in September. Myles Garrett isn’t the guy you want to face when your franchise quarterback is nursing a sore knee and playing behind a shaky offensive line.

All that stipulated, it’s impossible to pick the Browns, because they can’t move the ball efficiently or score enough to keep pace with a legitimate NFL offense. The Ravens’ defense enjoyed its only early-season success against Cleveland and is playing far better now. Rookie Dillon Gabriel is more mobile than Joe Flacco, who started in Baltimore, but hasn’t been able to punish opponents downfield. The Ravens know they can’t afford to slip up, and they won’t.

Ravens 27, Browns 16

Too close for comfort, but still a ‘W’

Brandon Weigel, editor (6-3): The Ravens played a mediocre first half against the Browns in Week 2 and a stellar second half. The result, a 41-17 win, looks great on paper, but let us not forget that the Ravens scored a touchdown on a 63-yard fumble recovery and benefited from favorable field position after a Joe Flacco interception in the third quarter and a turnover on downs in the fourth.

Cleveland’s defense is a formidable unit, ranking second in passing yards per game allowed (167) and 10th in rushing yards per game allowed (97.9), and that leads me to believe the score will be much closer in the rematch. The Ravens’ offensive inconsistencies Sunday against the Vikings are fresh on my mind, too. But this Browns offense, behind rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel, isn’t striking fear in anyone.

Ravens 24, Browns 20

Guest pick

Irie Harris, Cleveland.com: Yup, I’m doing it. I’m picking a Browns upset. But let me explain: The last time these teams met in the second half of a season with losing records was the “Kick-Six” game in 2015. Fast-forward 10 years later, and this has “trap game” written all over it for the Ravens. Baltimore’s come out strong since its Week 7 bye, winning the past three games. But Lamar Jackson not being 100% healthy and Derrick Henry struggling against Cleveland’s defensive pressure are red flags.

As for the Browns, they’ve got nothing to lose. Grant Delpit said Thursday that it’s time for their pride to show up on defense. They’re a squad that’s lost multiple games because of self-inflected wounds. Cleveland’s earned a win over Baltimore in each of the past four seasons. Why not make it five? Hopefully, this is the last time this year I plead my case for a Browns win, but here we are.

Browns 24, Ravens 18