Chiefs vs. Browns: Cleveland's defense has been 'rock solid'

The Kansas City Chiefs could be facing a situation where they have a number of starters out against the Cleveland Browns this afternoon.

The Browns won't have the same problem.

Cleveland is healthy, according to Chris Pokorny of Dawgs By Nature, who writes the Browns health comes down to three key players.

"Those players are defensive tackles Ahtyba Rubin and Phil Taylor, and cornerback Joe Haden. There were times this season in which a subset of those players were missing, which hurt either the run defense or the pass defense tremendously. You wouldn't think that missing one cornerback (Haden) would make a big difference, but it does -- the trickle down effect that he has on the rest of the rotation is remarkable.

"Regarding the Browns' run defense, the first time that Rubin and Taylor were healthy at the same time was three weeks ago against the Dallas Cowboys. In the three games they've played together, the Browns have held Dallas, Pittsburgh, and Oakland to 63, 49, and 85 yards rushing, respectively. The Browns' defense in its present state would be good enough to guide a team to a Wild Card berth; it's a shame they didn't have this fortune the entire season health-wise."

So, kind of a problem for the Chiefs. Their strength is running the ball, and stopping the run is something the Browns are doing well.

I'm not gonna bet against Jamaal Charles, though.