When the 2013 NFL football season kicked off roughly one month ago, tonight’s Thursday Night Football game between the 2-2 Buffalo Bills and 2-2 Cleveland Browns resembled a blemish on the primetime Thursday Night Football on NFL Network (not ESPN or Fox) TV schedule. These two teams that have struggled in recent years appear to have bottomed out and are on the up and up, and one will climb above .500 before the night is through with a victory tonight. Watch Thursday Night Football online free live streaming instructions are linked just below.
Cleveland began the season 0-2 and appeared headed for another lottery pick next year. Then young quarterback Brian Hoyer, a native of Cleveland thrust into the lineup when starter Brandon Wheeden went down due to injury in week three against the Vikings, stepped in and has led his team to two straight victories. The once-backup to Tom Brady has finally gotten his chance after some spot time in Arizona, and doesn’t appear ready to give up the job just yet.
Hoyer hasn’t been great in his two starts, but he has done enough to win. With Trent Richardson shipped off to the Colts for a 2014 first round pick, Hoyer has thrown five touchdowns and three interceptions, and managed to beat a tough Cincinnati team last week that owns one of the best ranked defenses in the league. Coupled with a strong defensive showing of their own, Cleveland came out ahead in the battle of Ohio by a score of 17-6 at home. The Browns defense is now ranked third in the league in giving up an average of 291.5 yards per game. They’re tough, and that will help Hoyer along even though Richardson is cleared to play but will be watching from the sidelines, ready to jump in if Hoyer struggles.
A young Bills squad enters tonight with a couple nagging injuries to deal with that many will watch Thursday Night Football online free live streaming. Running backs Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller were both injured last week against the Ravens, but both have been cleared to play tonight. How effective they will be coming off injuries and taking on a tough Browns defense will be something to look out for tonight. Spiller in particular has told the media he is not 100 percent yet, but willing to give it a go at 85 or 90 percent to hopefully give the Bills offense a boost.
Hoyer will need to avoid forcing passes as the Bills defense put on a show of their own last week, intercepting Joe Flacco a total of five times and allowing only 24 yards rushing over the entire game. The Ravens offense was suffocated by the Bills defense, and they hope to do the same to the Browns and their inexperienced quarterback tonight.
I predict Hoyer will stumble a bit against the Bills defense and the Bills will pull out a tight win on the road. A low scoring final score of 13-6 would be expected with these two teams playing, barring any big special teams plays or defensive scores.
Tonight’s Thursday Night Football game should be one of the best defensive battles of any two teams this season, and it will kick off on NFL Network in high definition (HD) with a start time of 8:25pm EST. NFL Network subscribers can opt to watch Thursday Night Football online free live streaming here on iPads, cell phones, laptops, computers or other Internet devices if their cable of satellite provider is on the list of approved and applicable providers.
