CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The 2020 football season concluded with Tampa Bay’s trouncing of the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV Sunday night and the odds for Super Bowl LVI are out.
Despite finishing 11-5 and exiting in the divisional round following a loss at Kansas City, the Browns aren’t favored by odds makers to get any closer to ending the franchises’ title drought.
BetOnline.ag lists the Browns at 20/1 to win Super Bowl LVI, tied with Seattle for the sixth-best odds. The oddsmaker gives Kansas City the best chance to win it all next season at 5/1. Tampa Bay is 9/1. Buffalo, Green Bay and the Rams are 12/1, the 49ers 14/1 and the Ravens 16/1.
The Broncos, Bengals, Lions, Jaguars and Jets all have the worst odds, 75/1, according to the sportsbook.
SportsBetting.com gave Cleveland worse odds – 28/1 – along with the Cowboys and Titans to win Super Bowl LVI. Kansas City is listed at 6/1, the Buccaneers 7/1 to repeat. The Bills are 10/1 while the Rams, Packers and Ravens are listed at 12/1. New Orleans (15/1), 49ers and Seahawks at 20/1 along with the Colts Dolphins and Steelers, who are all 25/1, also were given better odds than the Browns.
Jacksonville and Detroit are listed with the worst odds at 150/1 by the book.
Super Bowl LVI will be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California next February.
Promotion – Defensive special assistant Ben Bloom helped improve Cleveland’s run defense in 2020 and Monday he was rewarded with a promotion.
Bloom was named the team’s run game coordinator by defensive coordinator Joe Woods.
“I'm happy for Ben,” Woods said. “I didn't know Ben when I came to Cleveland, but I knew of him. He'd worked with Rod Marinelli, who I have great respect for after I worked with him in Tampa Bay. I knew Ben was going to be about fundamentals, technique and playing hard, and that's exactly what he brought to the table.
“Ben put together all of our run game game plans. He presented that to us as a staff and he presented it to the team. He's very detailed, very thorough and knows exactly what you need to do to stop an opponent. I'm happy for him and I'm glad we have a chance to keep him for at least another year.”
The Browns ranked ninth in the NFL in rush defense this past season, allowing an average of 110.8 yards per game. Cleveland held its opponent to fewer than 100 rushing yards in half of its regular season games and limited the Steelers to just 52 in the Browns’ Wild Card playoff victory in Pittsburgh.
“This means a lot,” Bloom said. “It's a great organization — head coach, coordinator, front office and ownership — everyone's been terrific to work with. It means a lot they're willing to give me a new title. I appreciate the opportunity to continue working and do my best to help the team win.”
Staying put – Browns defensive line coach Chris Kiffin is staying put.
Kiffin interviewed for the Packers defensive coordinator job but Green Bay named Joe Barry to the post and promoted Maurice Drayton to special teams coordinator Monday.
Setting the bar – Following an 11-5 season and visit to the divisional round of the playoffs, Browns linebacker Mac Wilson hasn’t been shy about resetting expectations going forward on social media.
Hall visit – Browns chief of staff Cali Brownson visited the Pro Football Hall of Fame over the weekend where memorabilia from her first season in Cleveland on Kevin Stefanski’s staff were on display.
