By Ray Porter Jr./ Urban Media Today
PITTSBURGH, PA–On November 21st, the Pittsburgh Steelers traveled to Cleveland, Ohio to face a Browns team who had 9 losses, but with nothing to lose, they came into Huntington Bank Stadium and pulled off the 24-19 Upset over the Steelers giving media and fans doubts on whether the Steelers were a smokescreen or not.
After the Steelers convincing 44-38 win at Cincinnati, the Browns came to Pittsburgh Sunday for the rematch and the Steelers returned the favor, defeating them 27-14 in front of a crowd of 66,845 at Acrisure Stadium.
“Appreciative of the efforts in-game. It didn’t start off the way we would like in terms of fluidity. We weren’t converting third downs early on,” said Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. “But the guys found traction.”
As Tomlin stated, just like in the first game, the Steelers had a rough time warming up as the offense had their challenges in the first quarter as they were forced to punt the ball on 3 of their 4 drives, only getting a Chris Boswell FG and a 3-0 lead while the Browns and QB Jameis Winston threw a 35-yard TD pass to WR Jerry Jeudy and a 7-3 lead.
But true to form, the Steelers were inspired by a splash play to get them on the right track as DE Keanu Benton intercepted Winston, giving the Steelers the ball deep in Browns territory. QB Russell Wilson (15/26, 158 yards, 2 TDs) led the Steelers on a 5-play, 31-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard TD by RB Najee Harris, giving the Steelers a 10-7. They would make it 13-7 on a 54-yard FG by Boswell to close out the half.
“I appreciate the defense providing some short fields and some splash in order to get us going as a team. It is a team game in that way,” Tomlin said. “Obviously, the special teams with the splash play down the stretch to get us out of the stadium. That’s what teams do, they make plays in all three phases. They uplift one another. When a certain component doesn’t roll in as smoothly as you like.”
The Steelers were able to keep the pressure on Winston (24/41, 212 yards, 2TD, 2 INT) sacking him 3 times (2 by DT Cam Heyward, 1 by LB Alex Highsmith) and another interception as James Pierre picked him off late in the 4th quarter and Wilson threw 2nd half TDs (one to WR Van Jefferson and to TE Pat Freiermuth) to give the Steelers a comfortable lead that wasn’t affected by Winston’s late TD to TE David Njoku (7 rec, 42 yards), but the Steelers were eventually able to close the game out after forcing the Browns to use their timeouts and kill the clock to seal the victory.
“We got to ride the wave that that four-man rush provides. Man, we put a lot of time in terms of developing that group and acquiring talent in that space. We’re not bashful about that. Our bigs set the pace for us,” Tomlin commented. “Then our littles obviously close the door. I’m just appreciative of those efforts. Good to have Alex Highsmith back in the fold. Just thankful for the consistent pressure they were able to put on them today.”
With the win, the Steelers (10-3) extended their lead over 8-5 Baltimore in the AFC North and will now prepare to travel to Philadelphia to face the 11-2 Eagles. With the loss, the Browns 3-10 are eliminated from playoff contention.
“Thankful for the win. It’s AFC North football. We will take it and keep moving.” Said Tomlin.
Notes: The Steelers honored their 2024 Hall of Honor Class Sunday: “First I just want to say congratulations to the Hall of Honor honorees. Dick LeBeau, Willie Parker, Jason Gildon, Casey Hampton,” remarked Tomlin. “I had an opportunity and blessing to work with three of the four men, and obviously I’ve known Jason [Gildon] since I’ve been here. They’re so deserving of the honor. I’m glad we were able to do our part in terms of making this a really good weekend for them. They’re deserving of that. Just wanted to tip the cap to those guys.”
Please email Ray at [email protected]
Follow him @rp2872_Jr on X (Formerly Twitter)
