Anybody's guess

Right now, at this very minute. your guess is as good as mine as to what the Browns' offensive and defensive units will look like when they kick off late Monday evening against the Las Vegas Raiders in their rescheduled National Football League game.

The latest COVID-19 surge is playing havoc at a most inopportune time as the Browns scurry from the standpoint of its  roster, which has become extremely malleable in the last several days, in an attempt to sustain their chances of playing in the postseason.

As many as 20 players, including head coach Kevin Stefanski and two of his assistant coaches, have spent the past few days bouncing into and out of COVID protocol. Because of the fluid situation, the NFL has allowed the Browns to declare their final game roster by 2 p.m. Monday.

Between now and then, the possibility of several starters clearing protocol remains in force. It started Sunday when right guard Wyatt Teller escaped COVID prison, welcoming defensive end Jadeveon Clowney on his way in.

There is no telling how many of Teller's teammates,  if any at all, will test negative and escape between now and Monday afternoon. And that is why predicting the outcome of the game is a fool's  errand, so to speak. But here goes, anyway, because that's what we do.

Getting Teller back is a huge plus. That cannot be stressed enough. The offensive line had become a mess after tackles Jedrick Wills Jr. and rookie James Hudson III entered protocol and Jack Conklin gone for the season.. With Teller back, the only question that remains is who mans the tackles.

Blake Hance, who had problems filling in for Conklin at right tackle, was a left tackle at Northwestern for four seasons. Thus, a perfect fit for Wills at left tackle, where he would be much more comfortable. Right tackle should be either Michael Dunn or Alex Taylor, neither of whom has played a snap this season.

The rest of the offense, as now constituted, suggests the Raiders will see an awful lot of running backs Nick Chubb and D'Ernest Johnson, exploiting a weakness that surrenders 125 yards a game. Success on the ground would take the pressure off starting quarterback Nick Mullens.

With wide receiver Jarvis Landry and tight end Austin Hooper, two of Baker Mayfield's favorites, on the COVID-reserve list, Mullens' options are limited. The most reliable targets now are Donovan Peoples-Jones, Harrison Bryant, David Njoku and Rashard Higgins, that's if the Browns' offensive honchos decide to throw to him.

Defensively, COVID has semi-crippled the secondary, particularly at safety with John Johnson III, Ronnie Harrison Jr, and Grant Delpit commiserating with each other. That means the deep secondary will be manned by M. J. Stewart Jr, normally a cornerback, Jovante Moffatt and rookie Richard LeCounte III.  Corner is a little better with Denzel Ward and Greedy Williams healthy, or COVID resistant.

The linebacker situation improved substantially with the return from the virus of middle backer Anthony Walker Jr., who calls defensive signals, along with rookie Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and veterans Malcolm Smith and Sione Takitaki. 

Now factor in that Raiders quarterback Derek Carr has strafed opposing defenses for nearly 4,000 yards this season, completing 68% of his passes for 18 touchdown passes and just 10 interceptions. And that's where we arrive at the key to this one from a Cleveland standpoint.

Carr has been sacked 31 times. The Browns' defensive line will miss Clowney, but get back edge rusher Takkarist McKinley, who had his best game of the season in last Sunday's victory over Baltimore and is back off the COVID list. How well he and the incomparable Myles Garrett play will be a major factor.'

Carr will be without tight end Darren Waller, one of his favorite receivers, sidelined with a strained IT band. The Cleveland secondary can expect to see plenty of smallish wide receiver Hunter Renfrow, coming off a 13-catch, 113-yard effort last week against Kansas City. He's caught 86 passes this season for 877 yards and five touchdowns.

The Raiders, who have lost five of the last six games after starting the season 5-2, are almost certain to arrive for the game in a nasty mood, angry at the NFL for postponing the game, originally scheduled for last Saturday, and moving it to Monday because of the raging COVID surge.

Look for the Browns to play this one extremely tight to the vest, conservative from the first snap. Nothing fancy. Fundamentally sound football, especially with a third-string quarterback. Mullens is a three-year veteran, but he is still a third-string quarterback with this team working with an iffy receiving corps.

The defense has been saving the offense for more than a month now and has proven it can surmount most obstacles. With COVID messing with the roster, this obstacle is easily the most critical with prolonging postseason hopes on the line.

It won't be pretty. It doesn't have to be. Mullens produces a near-perfect game, Chubb and Johnson wear down the Vegas defense and the defense continues to rescue its buddies on offense as the postseason target draws closer. Make it: 

Browns 21, Raiders 19