Cleveland Browns vs Los Angeles Chargers prediction for NFL Week 9

CLEVELAND — The Browns halted their losing streak and injected life, albeit still faint, into their season last week. How'd they do it? By beating one of the Harbaugh brothers.

Cleveland's win over the John Harbaugh-coached Baltimore Ravens looked a lot like how everyone was told the Browns would look this season. It's not how it had looked for most of the first seven games, especially not during a five-game losing streak.

How do the Browns keep that positivity going into the bye, despite entering Sunday with a 2-6 record? Go out and beat the other Harbaugh brother to improve to 3-6.

The Jim Harbaugh-coached Los Angeles Chargers (4-3) are exactly what you remember the Jim Harbaugh-coached University of Michigan teams being like, only the blue is much lighter and Los Angeles is much warmer than Ann Arbor. So what kind of result does the NFL version of Harbaugh find in Ohio compared to what the college version found?

It's a chance for the Browns to extend their winning streak to two games, which for this season would be an accomplishment. Here's how the three writers who follow the Browns for us, Chris Easterling, Nate Ulrich and Dan Kadar, view the team's Week 9 home game.

EASTERLING: Jameis Winston's play has the vibes and energy around the Browns good. The defense, despite some key injuries, is coming off arguably its best performance of the season relative to the competition. Another win over a Harbaugh brother would bring an enthusiasm unknown to mankind to the Browns as they head into the bye week. No Connor Stallions on the Chargers staff maybe means Jim Harbaugh goes back to losing games in Ohio. Expect a close game that could come down to kicks. BROWNS 21, CHARGERS 20

ULRICH: Jameis Winston elevated the Browns last week. There's no doubt about it, and he deserves credit for being yet another quarterback to play better in a Cleveland uniform than Deshaun Watson. At the same time, Winston's track record indicates he will throw multiple interceptions in a single game, and it would have been the case last week if the Ravens had been able to catch. This is a guess the Chargers will be able to catch, or at least catch enough to be the difference. CHARGERS 24, BROWNS 23

KADAR: Can Jameis Winston do it again? No. The Chargers defense is too good and is unlikely to let potential interceptions slip through its hands. A shaky secondary will hurt the Browns, too, as Los Angeles quarterback Justin Herbert is on a hot run of form. If the Browns want to win, a Nick Chubb flashback game may be necessary. CHARGERS 24, BROWNS 17

Chris Easterling can be reached at [email protected]. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ