(Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire)

The Cleveland Browns are currently riding a two-game losing streak, looking to earn their fourth victory this week against the Kansas City Chiefs.

At 3-10, Cleveland is now officially eliminated from playoff contention while the Chiefs clinched their division with Sunday’s 19-17 victory over the Chargers.

Kansas City also has a two-game lead over the entire AFC, and the Chiefs can secure home-field advantage throughout the playoffs by extending their three-game winning streak in Week 15.

With the Browns having little to play for beyond pride, oddsmakers could have a tough decision to make in terms of setting the spread for this contest.

Analyst Nick Camino shared the initial odds for the upcoming contest as the Browns are interestingly picked as six-point underdogs against the Chiefs.

#Browns listed as a 6-point underdog next week vs. Chiefs in Cleveland… https://t.co/lw90mbisfa

— Nick Camino (@NickCaminoWKYC) December 9, 2024

Cleveland dropped their second game in six days, losing 27-14 to Pittsburgh in Week 14.

The Browns could not complete their season sweep against the Steelers on Sunday, extending their regular season losing streak to 21 consecutive games inside Acrisure Stadium.

Quarterback Jameis Winston – who threw for a franchise record 497 yards against Denver on Monday night – struggled Sunday against the Steelers, finishing the outing with 212 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.

Hosting the Chiefs this week could bring significant national attention to the Browns, something this franchise has enjoyed with multiple primetime games over the past month.

Kansas City engineered a last-minute drive to beat the Chargers on Sunday during their primetime affair, earning a season sweep over Los Angeles and assuring the franchise of a spot in the postseason as a result.

Browns options as kicker Dustin Hopkins struggles

Dustin Hopkins success last year with the Browns has not followed him in 2024

One thing that appeared to be solved going into this season was special teams.

The Cleveland Browns hired one of the best ST coaches in the league, Bubba Ventrone. Their long snapper Charley Hughlett was one of the best. Punter Corey Bojorquez had a sensational season in 2023 and inked a two-year contract extension, and kicker Dustin Hopkins had his best year to date. On July 15, 2024, Hopkins signed a three-year contract extension worth $15,900,000.

GM Andrew Berry signed RB Nyheim Hines away from the Buffalo Bills to be the team’s new return man, so there was a lot of excitement for this signing. Special team aces Mike Ford, Justin Hardee, and Tony Brown were also signed to bolster the coverage teams.

But things have not worked out. Situations have come up.

Hines did not recover from his Jet Ski accident as quickly as first assumed and never played a single down. Brown ended up on IR at the end of October after he suffered a foot injury while he was on punt coverage during the win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 8. Hughlett would join him on IR with a rib injury. Hardee was released after making the Pro Bowl last year.

The Browns have gone through a bunch of warm bodies to return both punts and kickoffs and so far, their stats aren’t pretty. The punt coverage team, however, is a very bright spot on ST.

Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images

Then there is the kicker. Hopkins was having a Pro Bowl season in 2023 before he injured his hamstring while attempting to tackle Houston Texans KR Dameon Pierce who took back a 98-yard kick return for a touchdown during the Browns’ 36–22 win in Week 16.

At the time, Hopkins was 33-36 field goal attempts and had made 8-8 on kicks of 50-yards plus. His completion ratio was 91.7%, the highest of his nine-year career. The Pro Bowl kickers selected were Justin Tucker of the Ravens and the Seattle Seahawks’ Jason Myers. Tucker was 32-27 FGs with a conversion ratio of 86.5% while Myers made 35 of 42 kicks for 83.3%.

As you can see, Hopkins’ numbers were way better than both Tucker and Myers, yet because his injury occurred with several games remaining on the schedule, his Pro Bowl votes suffered significantly.

Hopkins was healthy going into this season and big things were expected from him. He was the darling of the 2023 season and had a knack for adding points when drives stalled near the halfway line.

After the Week 5 loss to the Washington Commanders, Hopkins was 7-8 on field goal attempts and 6-7 on PATs. He also had a large number of touchbacks on his kickoffs, which the coaching staff preferred.

Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Then in Week 6 against the tough Philadelphia Eagles, he missed a 52-yarder wide right in a 10-10 ballgame that had plenty of leg. In the following game against the Cincinnati Bengals, he missed a 49-yard field goal wide left on the Browns second possession, his only attempt of the game. He also shanked his only PAT attempt making him 0-2 in kicks for points in this contest.

Hopkins had a field goal blocked against the Los Angeles Chargers, then he missed a 51-yard field goal against the New Orleans Saints after an impressive 11-play drive, and then a chip shot 27-yarder all in the first half.

Now suddenly, Hopkins’ misses are a trend.

He went 1-2 last week against the Denver Broncos and 0-2 in the Steelers rematch after shanking a 38-yard field goal and on the subsequent drive a 43-yarder. If Hopkins makes both makeable kicks, the scoreboard is close and the Browns are right in the game. As it was, the offense made two good drives and ended up with nothing.

Some quick math makes that 1-4 in field goal attempts the last two games.

Does Hopkins have the yips?

He is now 16 of 23 field goal attempts (69.9%) which are high school numbers. The franchise is paying him extremely good money to shank balls that should be redeemed for needed points. At one time in the Steelers game, it would have been 13-13 at the half which looks competitive to both rosters.

Are the Browns going to allow Hopkins to continue to miss field goals that should be made? What now?

After Cleveland lost to the Steelers 27-14, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski was asked about Hopkins’ failed kicks. He stated:

“He’s our kicker.”