- WHERE: Huntington Bank Field (Cleveland)
- WHEN: 8:15 p.m. ET | Prime Video, NFL+
The Steelers have won five straight games and put themselves in a position to chase the AFC’s No. 1 playoff seed heading into Thursday’s game against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field.
Right now, the Bills and Chiefs are ahead of the Steelers in the AFC hierarchy, but Pittsburgh can match Buffalo’s nine-win total with a victory in Cleveland.
Sunday’s win over the Ravens showed the Steelers can flex their defensive muscles, even against the league’s best offenses. They held Baltimore to its season-worst showing on offense, allowing only 329 yards and forcing three turnovers.
The Browns haven’t had much to smile about this season, although Jameis Winston has steadied the QB position somewhat. His young receivers also have stepped up since the trade of Amari Cooper, showing more overall offensive potential recently.
Cleveland isn’t yet eliminated mathematically, but their playoff hopes are all but dead. They wouldn’t mind playing spoiler, however, like they did in their Week 8 home upset over the Ravens.
After having the Steelers run roughshod over the Browns for most of the 2010s, Cleveland has made it a more competitive head-to-head series, splitting the past four meetings with Pittsburgh — the home team winning all four.
Thursday’s game also could get ugly, weather-wise. Early reports indicate winds might exceed 20 mph, temperatures could drop into the 30s and rain or snow showers are possible throughout the rivalry matchup.
Here are four things to watch for when the Steelers visit the Browns on Thursday night on Prime Video:
1) Wilson, Steelers’ red-zone offense need a pickup. Mike Tomlin has joked that he’s tired of kicker Chris Boswell winning Special Teams Player of the Week (Boswell won the honor again on Wednesday). What Tomlin really means is that he wants his offense converting more touchdowns. The Steelers made undeniable gains with the move from Justin Fields to Russell Wilson at quarterback, but Sunday against the Ravens was a step backward offensively, highlighting the team’s red-zone issues. Pittsburgh reached the red zone four times. The Steelers kicked three field goals, and Wilson was intercepted once. This season the Steelers are 30th in the NFL in red-zone efficiency at 44.4%, and they’re below the 40% mark with Wilson at the helm. They were 3 of 3 in the red area against the Commanders but 0 of 4 against both the Giants and Ravens. One big issue: Wilson is only 7-of-24 passing (29.2%) inside opponents’ 20 yard line. The Steelers also have key penalties, turnovers and drops down there and haven’t run the ball effectively enough. The Steelers have teased using Fields more as a changeup and could do so after seeing Taysom Hill tear up the Browns in Week 11. Perhaps getting the tight ends more involved is another key for Pittsburgh. Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington have four TD catches on nine red-zone targets this season.
2) Who’ll play left tackle for the Browns? With Dawand Jones and James Hudson now on season-ending injured reserve, the Browns’ left tackle plans for Thursday night are unclear. Jedrick Wills would have been the most likely candidate to fill in, but he has been ruled out due to a knee injury. Germain Ifedi, who has backed up at both offensive tackle spots this season, seems in line to start. Other options at the position include the recently signed Geron Christian and emergency tackle Joel Bitonio. Even with Alex Highsmith (ankle) ruled out, the Steelers are a strong team up front with a vicious rush, led by T.J. Watt, who has 17 sacks, 21 tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries (one returned for a TD) in 12 career games against the Browns. Nick Herbig was one of the big standouts in the win over the Ravens, helping Watt on the edge along with newly acquired Preston Smith, who has been worked into the rotation.
3) Steelers hold the kicking edge. Kicking was a huge factor for both teams this past week. Boswell was Pittsburgh’s one source for points in the win, making all six of his first-goal tries, including kicks of 52 and 50 yards. It has been a career season for Boswell, making his league-best 29 field goals on 30 attempts. His only miss was from 62 yards back in Week 3. The Browns’ Dustin Hopkins, however, has had a poor run lately, including a rough game in New Orleans, officially missing two kicks. He first missed a 51-yarder, but right before halftime Hopkins had two cracks at making a kick during a one-score game. The first attempt from 32 yards missed, but a penalty gave him a reprieve. Amazingly, the subsequent 27-yarder was also no good. Hopkins was tremendous for the Browns in 2023, making 33 of 36 tries (including 8 of 8 from 50 yards and beyond). But this season, he’s only 14 of 20 overall and 4 of 8 from 50-plus yards. After a solid start to the season, he’s now missed kicks in four of his past five games, going 7 of 12 in that span and 0 of 3 from 50-plus. With the weather expected to be dicey on Thursday night, the Browns’ kicking concerns could become that much more worrisome.
4) Can Browns D reverse recent ugly trend? The Browns’ downward turn defensively has been a major source of disappointment this season. They forced two turnovers — their first takeaways since Week 5 — against the Saints, which was a positive development. But it was perhaps the only one, as the Browns allowed 259 pass yards and 214 rushing, giving up three fourth-quarter TDs in the 35-14 loss. This unit has steadily declined in its play after the first month of the season, and Sunday might have been the low point. The Browns still have the ability to get into opponents’ backfields, and Myles Garrett had a three-sack game against the Chargers, but he was held without a statistic Sunday. Cleveland allows 4.8 yards per rush and 7.2 yards per pass, both in the bottom 10 among NFL defenses. The Browns also have forced only seven turnovers all season, and only two by interceptions. The Steelers have a balanced run game with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. They have big-play potential at receiver in George Pickens, Mike Williams and Calvin Austin III. Pittsburgh’s offensive line is developing into a good unit and Wilson is always a unique challenge defensively. This isn’t one of the league’s most explosive offenses, but it will lean on teams when it gets a lead. The Browns will have their hands full if their recent performances are any indication.