The snow falling heavily. The pitch covered in a blanket of snow. Nick Chubb running for a touchdown with 57 seconds left in the game. Russell Wilson’s failed Hail Mary. It was a memorable Thursday Night Football for the Cleveland Browns, who among the few satisfactions of this season can still include the fact of defeating both the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers; two Division rivals and, above all, two franchises that have made no secret of their ambition to reach the Super Bowl.
But it was also a memorable Thursday Night Football for all football fans; in particular, the last two quarters of the game provided highly spectacular moments, with the snow starting to fall heavily on Cleveland, the Steelers making a comeback in a snow-covered Huntington Bank Field to take a 19-18 lead and, finally , the Browns finding the strength to react and find an unexpected touchdown just under a minute from the end of the hostilities to set the score at 24-19. Upset served.
The calm before the storm
The game took a while to get going, so much so that the first quarter ended with no points on the board, with two 3&outs by the Browns and a failed field goal plus a “turnover on downs” by the Steelers. At the start of the second quarter, however, Boswell, protagonist of the Steelers’ victory against the Ravens last Sunday, made up for the first mistake and hit the posts from 48 yards to make it 3-0 for the visitors. At that point the Browns showed a bit of pride: first Winston orchestrated a drive that started from his own 20 yards and culminated with Chubb’s touchdown then, after a sack from Garrett to Wilson resulting in a fumble recovered by Reid, he brought his team within range from a field goal, with Hopkins precise to extend the Browns’ lead to 10-3 with which the first two quarters of the game ended. The first half, therefore, went by without any particular shocks, with the Browns still surprising in managing defensively to block the Steelers attack and offensively in carrying out consistent drives. But the fireworks were yet to come.
Browns vs Steelers > Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson
The third quarter, with the first signs of snow falling on Cleveland, opens with Tillman’s fumble, a prelude to an electrifying second half. The Browns’ defense, however, returns to being the one admired last season and, after forcing the Steelers into another “turnover on downs”, they do not concede more than one field goal to the visiting attack, with Boswell hitting the posts again for 10-6. At this point, with the snow increasing in intensity, the field almost completely covered in snow and the game open to all kinds of possibilities, the Browns and Steelers begin to beat each other. After orchestrating a 10-play drive starting from his own 35, Winston runs for a touchdown and, then finding Njoku on the 2-point conversion attempt, puts the Browns up 18-6. But the Steelers respond and make an unlikely comeback (given the weather conditions): first Wilson finds Warren for the touchdown to make it 18-13 (with an extra point signed by Boswell), then Herbig forces a fumble on Winston, finally Austin, after a launch from 23 yards by Wilson, he finds the passing touchdown (with a failed 2-point conversion attempt). The interception suffered by Winston on the following drive, with just over 4 minutes to go, seems like it could put an end to the game. But in such a context, nothing can be taken for granted. The Browns defense takes center stage again and forces a 3&out on the Steelers attack. The oval returns to Winston’s hands 45 yards from the end zone; and the former Saints QB orchestrates an almost perfect drive, also driven by the home crowd who, despite the adverse weather conditions, continued to cheer on their heroes. And with Winston’s throw to Jeudy for a gain of 15 yards it was clear to everyone that this drive would end in a touchdown. And so it was, with Chubb covering the last 9 yards (in 2 carries) that separated the Browns from the end zone and finishing with a touchdown to make it 24-19. Wilson then tried, with 57 seconds available, to perform a miracle, but failed in his attempt and stopped 35 yards from the end zone.
Oxygen for the Browns, wake-up call for the Steelers?
The Browns, then, did it again. After beating the Ravens, they also took the scalp of the Steelers. In an anonymous and disappointing season, they still managed to give their fans two victories (for now) against two division rivals (the Browns have a 2-1 record in intra-division matches). Against the Steelers, with their backs against the wall after the last two bad defeats against the Chargers and the Saints, they showed their pride and played good football in both phases. Jameis Winston finished with 18 completions on 27 attempts, for 219 yards; Nick Chubb scored 2 touchdowns, rushing for 59 yards; Jeudy received for 89 yards; Njoku, despite a bloody drop, was the protagonist of a phantasmagorical reception on the 2-point conversion attempt for the momentary 18-6. All good sensations from an attack which, led by Winston, still gave different responses than the one seen with Watson as QB before his injury. And now the question arises: will Winston be the starting QB in 2025?
After having massacred it in recent weeks, it must be recognized that the Browns defense also did its duty against the Steelers: apart from the empty pass between the third and last quarter, the unit led by Jim Schwartz gave the team a hard time Steelers attack, always putting Russell Wilson under pressure and forcing 4 sacks (3 by Garrett).
This is the way to end the season with dignity; if the Browns manage to be consistent with this type of performance, this bad season will still be able to end in a fairly dignified way. And it would take some pressure off coach Stefanski.
Pressure, however, which is now all on the shoulders of coach Mike Tomlin, who was not completely clear in some choices made on Thursday (see Chubb’s touchdown of 24-19 which came after accepting a risky penalty). Because it’s true that Pittsburgh is doing a great job this year, but it’s also true that just getting to the playoffs and continuing to exit in the first round is no longer enough. This is why an elite QB like Wilson was taken to win playoff games. And if in the first month of ownership after Wilson’s injury things went quite smoothly, in the last 2 games the Steelers’ attack has struggled more (the victory against the Ravens came thanks to 6 field goals made by Boswell). It could be a small wake-up call. Time to take the necessary precautions between now and January, coach Tomlin has had enough.
