The 2026 NFL season finally began last week, so we’ve had our first taste of football. The Week 2 slate isn’t quite as stacked as the opener’s was, but after a long offseason, a full day of games is a welcome sight. The Cleveland Browns are not going to be a good football team this year, so the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are probably looking forward to the chance to snag their first win of the season. They’ll still have to fight for it, though; here are the details.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET. Here’s a preview, prediction and pick for Browns vs. Buccaneers in NFL Week 2 on Sunday.
Browns vs. Buccaneers prediction, preview
We knew coming into the season that the Browns weren’t going to be winning many games. They hired Todd Monken as head coach to kickstart the rebuild, then traded Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett away for a haul. The signs were there.
Enter Week 1 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Cleveland got smacked around in a 34-10 loss, an ugly showing that saw the underdogs go scoreless until the second half and finally reach the end zone in the final frame once some of Jacksonville’s starters hit the bench. Deshaun Watson started under center for the Browns and salvaged his stat line with a 16-for-22 showing, 205 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He took five sacks and was clearly not comfortable out there, but it seems the team is rolling with him again in Week 2. Elsewhere on offense, Quinshon Judkins was bottled up with just 33 rushing yards, but rookie wideouts Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion finished as the top two receivers on the day and showed flashes of what this front office thought they were drafting. The defense was exposed on the scoreboard, but the 360 yards allowed could’ve been far worse, as well. What will the Browns do? Flush that game and move on to the next.
The Buccaneers are probably wanting to do the same after dropping their first outing of the new season. Granted, expectations are much higher for this team than for the Browns, especially as Todd Bowles looks like a sneaky hot-seat candidate as head coach.
Losing 27-33 to the Cincinnati Bengals’ high-powered offense isn’t anything to be ashamed about, though. Tampa Bay started really slow in Week 1 and didn’t really get rolling until the second half, so the way the team nearly rallied from down 24-10 at the intermission was something of a moral victory of sorts. The Bucs were outgained 351-282 overall, but they did go 5-for-10 on third downs and 2-for-4 in the red zone. The key is going to be avoiding costly turnovers after losing four of them in the opener, which ultimately did them in. Baker Mayfield was efficient at 23-for-28 with 216 yards, though, and Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin Jr. looked the part as the top receiving weapons. Furthermore, Bucky Irving seemed healthy with 45 yards and a score on the ground, plus seven grabs for 48 yards as a receiver. The defense certainly could’ve played better, but this week brings a significantly easier matchup in which the unit can bounce back.
Browns vs. Buccaneers pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Buccaneers as an -8.5 home favorite against the spread with -455 odds to win on the Moneyline. The Browns are a +350 road underdog to win outright with the game total set at 41.5 combined points.
The spread may be a smidge wide, but it’s one I’m willing to take with glee this week. Tampa Bay is a far superior team in almost every which way. Mayfield is the superior quarterback, the pass-catching weapons are largely better/more proven, and there’s a huge advantage when it comes to the defense. The Bucs’ secondary may not be the best, but the front seven has a massive upper hand given the presence of Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey, Rueben Bain Jr., Alex Anzalone and more. After ranking fifth in rushing yards allowed last season and adding more talent up front, they should completely stymie the Cleveland rushing attack. By forcing Watson to throw, they invite mistakes and should be able to capitalize on those, too. Don’t overthink this one.
