The Cleveland Browns versus the Pittsburgh Steelers in the rubber match had plenty of incentive. Both clubs were tied for the lead in the AFC North Division with identical 5-2-0 records. The winner would sit on top of the division on their own.
The Browns won the first game 27-24 in Week 4, which was played in Cleveland. But the Browns are 0-10 playing regular season games in Pittsburgh in the past decade. That says quite a bit.
RELATED: STEELERS VS. BROWNS RECAP
Pittsburgh came into this game with
the league’s #7 run defense. It just so happens that the Browns found their running game last weekend against the Tennessee Titans, so this would become one of the game’s hot topics.
In the end, Cleveland was dominated by the Steelers and lost 27-6.
So, who played well for the Browns? Who didn’t?
BROWNIES – Winners
TE Harold Fannin – While Cleveland’s offense could not sustain any drives, Fannin was a single shining star for all four quarters. Early in the second quarter, the Browns were faced with a third-and-six down 10-3. Fannin snagged a 12-yard pass to give the Browns a new set of downs.
On the very next play, he secured a short pass, then rumbled for 22 yards to the Steelers’ 44. As the third quarter was winding down, QB Deshaun Watson found Fannin for a 15-yard gain. Fannin gained 37 yards on the second play of Quarter 4 before being tackled at Pittsburgh’s 39-yard line. With 6:51 remaining, Watson connected with Fannin for 27 yards and, two plays later, for another 10 yards. 12 targets, 10 receptions for 154 yards with a 15.4 yards-per-catch average.
Kickers – Punter Corey Bojorquez had four kicks for 199 yards and a 49.8 average, including one for 58 yards. K Andre Szmyt nailed both field goal attempts.
S Ronnie Hickman and S Emmanuel McNeil-Warren – Hickman had a fine game. Midway in the first quarter, he tracked down RB Rico Dowdle from behind after a nine-yard gain. When Freiermuth was open for 28 yards in the second quarter, it was Hickman who took him down instead of the player whose duty it was to cover him. Both players ganged up on Washington after a 12-yard gain early in the fourth quarter.
On kickoff coverage, McNeil-Warren had two tackles. He read the run and then nailed Dowdle for a two-yard gain in the third quarter. He tackled Warren, forced a fumble, and then recovered the loose ball that was then overturned. He blitzed when Pittsburgh had the ball at their own five and was able to stop Warren after just two yards. For the game, Hickman had seven total tackles while McNeil-Warren had nine.
FROWNIES – Losers
The play that lost the game – Cleveland had mounted an 44-yard drive that culminated in a 49-yard Szmyt field goal to cut Pittsburgh’s lead to 13-6. 45 seconds remained before halftime. Pittsburgh QB Aaron Rodgers has made a career out of getting a lot with so little. RB Jalen Warren gashed up the middle for 23 yards. A two-yard completion. Next, 28 yards to a wide-open TE Pat Freiermuth for 28 yards, which placed the ball in field goal range. Rodgers, not wanting to go into the locker room with three points, tossed a short pass to WR Germie Bernard for 15 yards with sloppy coverage by DB Denzel Ward to the one-yard line with five seconds remaining. This one play was the difference going into the locker room, 16-6, and made a defensive stand, or the ensuing touchdown run, which put Cleveland down 20-6. Absolutely the dagger going into the locker room.
Penalties – Ahhhh!!!! Every game, the penalties are drive killers. Seven were called in the first half, with five accepted. Nine total for the game for 85 yards. And nothing changes. Seven were called on the offensive line, including two holding calls on rookie OT Spencer Fano.
Run defense up the middle – The Steelers rarely ran to the corners. Why? Because they gashed the Browns over and over and over and over up the gut. All day long, MLB Carson Schwesinger was blocked out or moved to the side. All of the defensive tackles for Cleveland struggled to maintain gaps, and the Steelers offensive line just moved bodies anywhere they decided. DT Mason Graham had one tackle for loss, but with 1:56 left.
DT Mike Hall got a one-yard stop on RB Rico Dowdle in the second half, and not much in the other three quarters. In the second quarter, DT Maliek Collins got RB Warren for minus two, then he celebrated like that isn’t his job on all of the other downs. Pittsburgh had 200 yards on the ground, with most of that on the legs of Warren, who gashed the middle of the Browns’ defense for 143 rushing yards. When safeties are being called on to make the bulk of tackles, there is a huge problem.
No pass rush – Rodgers sat back in the pocket all day and got to go through most of his progressions. Where was the pressure? DT Adin Huntington got the only sack of the day, as Cleveland had just two QB hits. Otherwise, nobody got into the face of Rodgers. DE Jared Verse got a QB hit! Yoohoo!
Missed tackles – Denzel Ward, Carson Schwesinger, Tyson Campbell, Grant Delpit, Mike Hall, Quincy Williams. These were just the most obvious.
Run game – The Steelers came into this game ranked #7 against the run. So, what happened? The Browns tried to run the ball for 34 total yards. All game long, Pittsburgh had seven in the box and, on occasion, eight.
Offensive line’s new nickname: Jailbreak – From the opening drive, the Steelers played an all-out pass rush. In the end, there were eight sacks. But in fairness to Deshaun Watson, his escape routes from the pocket, as it was beginning to implode, were not good. On three of those sacks, he simply ran into a Pittsburgh defender trying to escape. Which offensive linemen, you ask? Yes.
Offense first half – With 6:34 left in the first quarter, the Browns had lost two turnovers, had four accepted penalties called, allowed three sacks, and had minus one yard. Their first first down was at the 12:40 mark of the second quarter. At halftime, eight rushing yards.
Red Zone, third-down efficiency, fourth downs – The Browns got into the Red Zone three times all game, and went 0-3. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh was 3-5. Cleveland was 4-13 on third downs versus 4-11 for the Steelers. The Browns went for it twice on fourth down and did not convert either. All three categories for the Browns provide a glimpse into why the failures occurred.
Milk Bones – There is a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot
CB Denzel Ward – On Pittsburgh’s second possession in the first quarter, they drove down to Cleveland’s nine-yard line. On a second-and-one, Dowdle took it up the middle and met Ward, who had read the play. Ward hit him high at the eight-yard line, rode Dowdle for three yards, and then just let go. On the short pass to Bernard for 15 yards right before the half, Ward had no clue where Bernard was and left him wide open. Ward did secure the interception, but his man, WR D.K. Metcalf, was open and then bobbled the catch, which ultimately landed in Ward’s lap. Two total tackles with two batted passes.
TE coverage – The Steelers’ tight ends didn’t have a banner day, but were a very important aspect of their offense and had several long gains.
Most notable was the 58-yard catch-and-run by Darnell Washington, who had beaten Schwesinger badly from the get-go. He caught the pass at the Browns’ 45-yard line with a seven-yard lead on Schwesinger, and then it took several players to bring down the big tight end. Washington was the motion man, then blew right past the linebacker and rumbled down the one-yard line. TE Pat Freiermuth’s catch for 28 yards right before the half got the offense believing they could score with so little time left. A seven-yard completion to Freiermuth for seven yards right before the first quarter had clicked off got the Steelers to Cleveland’s 12. Washington beat Schwesinger badly on the 24-yard completion in the second quarter with 7:54 left before the half. Washington led all Pittsburgh receivers with 94 yards on three catches, while Freiermuth caught both targets for 35 yards.
QB Shedeur Sanders – When Watson went down on Cleveland’s first possession on a sack by Alex Highsmith, Watson remained on the turf. Replays showed he had been hit in the head. The referee sent him off, and into the tent he went. Sanders came out and completed a pass for one yard. The Steelers’ pass rush flushed him, and it collapsed repeatedly. Sanders completed another pass for one yard. His time on the field could be summed up in three words: Deer in headlights. If your backup isn’t getting many first-team reps in practices, that should change.
Who were your winners and losers from Week 8 for the Browns?
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