Many people felt that the reunion between the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night could be one-sided. Few expected the Browns to be the ones to beat the pack. The tone was set from the start in the final game of Super Wild-Card Weekend, with Ben Roethlisberger failing to make it to the first game of scrimmage, and the Browns tracked it down for a score. Cleveland then possessed the momentum for the duration of the first half, with three Roethlisberger interceptions to build up a stunning 28-point lead. The Steelers showed plenty of life, pulled within two counts and threatened a comeback thanks to a revival of the Big Ben, but then it was too little, too late, and Cleveland decided its first playoff victory since 1994 with a 48- 37 decision .
The Steelers entered Sunday night’s relationship with history on their side; they consistently did business at home against the Browns, also earlier in the season with a 38-7 series Cleveland. But almost nothing did their way early in their latest clash with the Browns, who rejected two passes for the picks, sterilized every second piece of the Steelers’ attacking offense, and seized the opportunity to cool Baker Mayfield it. let play and lean on the battered lean. duo of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. Even later in the showdown, when Roethlisberger definitely made it a notch and JuJu Smith-Schuster and Chase Claypool started finding significant gains, Pittsburgh’s production found so much in the trash.
A fourth Browns interception late in the fourth quarter ended the deal for Cleveland, which has not reached the after-season before Sunday night since 2002, ensuring the Browns a trip to reigning reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs in the to tackle division round – all after which upset their AFC North rivals without the help of their head coach, All-Pro left guard, no. 1-wide receiver and two top corners. In other words, Sunday night was a huge one for the long basement occupants of the AFC North.
Here’s a full breakdown of what happened Sunday night.
Why the browns won
The Browns played exceptional complementary football. Their defense forced turnover, and their offense mostly benefited from it. And after the Browns’ defense started the season with a point in the fourth quarter, Chubb and the Browns offense extended their lead. After the Steelers responded quickly, the Browns’ offense scored a crucial three-point lead before kicking another field goal after Roethlisberger’s fourth interception of the night.
The Browns’ offensive line played a big part in Cleveland’s first playoff game in 26 years. An exclamation point is in order for Michael Dunn, who filled in wonderfully for Pro Bowler Joel Bitonio. Rookie Jedrick Wills also played exceptional ball in his playoff debut as he was part of a line that allowed no single pocket Mayfield. This is important as the Steelers led the soccer tournament in pockets or drew for four years in a row.
Why the Steelers lost
Pittsburgh, the team that trained all week, completely flattened out against a Cleveland team that practiced most of the week. With the offense, the Steelers converted the first half four times, turning the Browns into 21 points. Three of the turnover was intercepted by Roethlisberger, whose fourth interception set up the Browns’ final points of the night. Roethlisberger threw in a 501-meter defeat and four touchdowns. Smith-Schuster got 13 passes for 157 yards and a score, while Diontae Johnson caught 11 passes for 117 yards in his playoff debut.
Pittsburgh’s defense, a unit that has forced at least one turnover in 10 of its first 11 games, has not been able to record a turnover in the last six games and the second game against Cleveland for the fourth time. Without Joe Haden, the Steelers team was selected by Mayfield, who became the first full-back since Vinny Testaverde to lead the Browns to a playoff game.
Pivot point
With the 35-10 halftime, the Steelers scored two touchdowns and forced three points in the third quarter. They had a fourth-and-one on their own 46-year-old line at the start of the fourth quarter. But instead of trying for that, Pittsburgh tried to pull Cleveland’s outside before Jordan Berry’s point sailed into the end zone. The Browns took full advantage of the Steelers’ conservative decision. Six plays after Berry’s point, Cleveland extended his lead to 42-23 after Chubb took Mayfield’s second pass at 40 yards to pay for dirt.
Playing the game
The Browns have many candidates, but the best game of the game goes to Chubb, whose reception of a screen pass was halted by Pittsburgh’s momentum while giving his team a 19-point lead in three minutes in the fourth quarter. .
Quotable
‘We let Michael Dunn walk into the left goal for Joel Bitonio. And then Michael got hurt and a man named Blake [Hance], that I literally introduced myself in the locker room before the game piled up in the fourth quarter. ” – Mayfield to NBC Sports when asked about his success behind Cleveland’s newly designated offensive.
What’s next
The Browns are at Kansas City, where they will face Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the defending champions. Browns will have Kevin Stefanski on the sidelines again, who enjoyed Sunday night’s game from the comfort of his basement. Pittsburgh will start an interesting off-season as the Steelers have a number of notable free throws that include Smith-Schuster, James Conner and Bud Dupree, among others.