This weekend, the 5-3 Cleveland Browns will take on the 2-5 New Orleans Saints. You wouldn’t tell from their record, but going into the year, most would have said the Saints were the team on the rise and the Browns were rebuilding. In reality, these two teams are pretty close together in terms of overall talent.

That being said, there is a reason the Browns are in the playoff hunt and the Saints sit at the bottom of the NFC South. Cleveland has proven to be the better team this year, and they will have a chance to solidify that on Sunday. 

Comparing these two rosters side by side, here is where the Browns have a positional advantage over the Saints.

Defensive line

The Saints defensive line is one of the worst in the NFL, specifically on their interior. The likes of Devon Godchaux and Nathan Shepherd are just replacement-level players who don’t impact the game in a major way.

Mason Graham is an ascending player, and as the 5th overall pick, he just brings a level of talent that the Saints lack up front. Maliek Collins is a disruptive counterpart to Graham and is constantly a thorn in the side of offensive linemen. This is a clear advantage for Cleveland. 

Linebacker

The Saints have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. Part of that is on the defensive line, but part of it is on an underwhelming group of linebackers. The duo of Kaden Elliss and Pete Werner just isn’t all that good compared to other starting linebacker groups.

Carson Schwesinger is a rising star after winning defensive rookie of the year last season. He will continue to develop with experience and is already the best linebacker who will take the field in this game.

Wide receiver

If you want to say that the Saints' top receiver, Chris Olave, is the best single-pass catcher in this game, then I won’t argue with you. He was an All-Pro last season and is on pace to have even more receiving yards this year. However, after him, the rest of that room looks pretty thin. 

Top to bottom, I prefer the depth of the Browns wide receiver room. Rookie Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion have both looked good this year, and Jerry Jeudy is an established veteran who was in the Pro Bowl two years ago. It’s a strong group that is on the rise.