Week 8: Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Recap

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NFL 

Pittsburgh Steelers Dominate The Cleveland Browns, Lead The AFC North

The Pittsburgh Steelers came away with a dominant 33-18 win against divisional opponent Cleveland Browns. This game showed the Week 1 matchup between these teams was a fluke and not the new norm.

Cleveland has definitely improved from the previous years, but they are still light years away from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

First Quarter

The Cleveland Browns started the game on offense, driving all the way down to Pittsburgh’s 13-yard line before having to settle for a 34-yard field goal. Kicker Greg Joseph’s kick put the Browns on top early 3-0.

Baker Mayfield was hot this drive, throwing for six completions on seven attempts with 57 passing yards. The Steelers and Browns would trade three and outs that were heavily influenced by penalties.

Both teams combined for five penalties through the first nine minutes of the game. Pittsburgh’s next drive would end quickly after a third-down pass was tipped and intercepted by Derrick Kindred.

The Browns leaned heavily on running back Nick Chubb the following drive, as he accounted for all 29 yards for the Browns before they settled for a field goal. Greg Joseph nailed the 45-yard attempt giving them a 6-0 lead following the Steelers’ turnover.

The Browns defense was dominant this quarter holding the Steelers to 16 total yards and no first downs.

Second Quarter

The Cleveland Browns continued their drive, getting to the Steelers’ 23-yard line before stalling and attempting another field goal. Greg Joseph missed the 41-yard attempt giving Pittsburgh some hope only down by six.

Pittsburgh’s offense took advantage of the missed field goal, gaining two first downs before Roethlisberger took a deep shot to Antonio Brown for the 43-yard touchdown.

Chris Boswell hit the extra point, giving Pittsburgh their first lead up 7-6. The Steelers’ defense fed on the offense’s success, as cornerback Joe Haden recorded his first interception of the season. Pittsburgh’s offense capitalized once again, orchestrating a 16-play, 87-yard touchdown drive.

The Steelers drive ended on a one-yard touchdown pass from Ben Roethlisberger to Antonio Brown. Kicker Chris Boswell nailed the extra point giving Pittsburgh a 14-6 lead heading into halftime.

Third Quarter

Pittsburgh started the second half on offense and had early success gaining 54 yards until back up running back Stevan Ridley fumbled at the Browns’ 21-yard line. Both teams would trade punts with the Steelers’ punter Jordan Berry pinning Cleveland at their four-yard line.

Pittsburgh’s defense took advantage of the field position as Bud Dupree drew a holding penalty in the end zone leading to a safety giving Pittsburgh a 16-6 lead. On the ensuing safety punt, Pittsburgh made a huge mental mistake, letting the free kick go untouched allowing Cleveland to recover at Pittsburgh’s 24-yard line.

Pittsburgh’s defense completely imploded, getting four penalties for 23 yards on six offensive plays from the Browns. Cleveland cashed in with a one-yard touchdown from Baker Mayfield to Antonio Callaway.

Greg Joseph missed the extra point leaving the score 16-12 Pittsburgh on top. The Steelers responded quickly going on a 5-play 75-yard scoring drive, capped with a 12-yard James Conner rushing touchdown.

Chris Boswell nailed the extra point giving Pittsburgh a 23-12 lead. Conner was the feature of this drive as he accounted for 60 of the teams 75 yards including the touchdown. The Browns’ offense struggled again, losing four yards on three plays forcing a punt back to the Steelers. The third quarter ended with the Pittsburgh Steelers driving at the Browns 28-yard line.

Fourth Quarter

Pittsburgh stalled at the Browns’ 24-yard line, settling for a 42-yard field goal that Chris Boswell would put through the uprights, giving Pittsburgh a 26-12 lead. The Steelers’ second half defensive domination would continue holding the Browns for a second consecutive drive with negative yards.

After both teams traded punts, the Steelers imposed their will on this tired Browns defense. Pittsburgh commanded a 10-play, 5:37 long 65-yard drive, with only rushing plays. James Conner capped this drive racing into the end zone for a 22-yard touchdown, with the extra point Pittsburgh went up 33-12.

Cleveland got the ball back with 2:04 left in the game and produced one of their best drives. Baker Mayfield led a 9-play, 75-yard drive ending with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Seth Devale. The Browns failed the two-point conversion leaving the score at 33-18, giving Pittsburgh its 15th straight home win against the Browns.

Fantasy Implications

Cleveland Browns

Cleveland had little to no starting fantasy performers, as the team only gained a total of 237 total yards for the game. Baker Mayfield led all Browns with 14 fantasy points as the quarterback went for 189 total yards two touchdowns and an interception. Antonio Callaway was second on the team with 9.6 fantasy points from his five catches, 36 yards, and one touchdown.

Nick Chubb had a solid game going for 7.5 fantasy points on 20 touches for 75 total yards. One disappointing performance today was tight end David Njoku, who did not record a single statistic, giving him 0 fantasy points.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Where Cleveland struggled Pittsburgh showed out, giving fantasy owners a plethora of fantasy starters. No player scored more than James Conner who went for 29 touches 212 total yards and two touchdowns for a total of 33.2 fantasy points.

Antonio Brown also had a marvelous game going for 19.4 fantasy points on six receptions 74 yards and two touchdowns. Ben Roethlisberger had an average day going for 16.9 fantasy points on 263 total yards two touchdowns and one interception. Receiver JuJu-Smith-Schuster had a pedestrian effort going for only 3.3 fantasy points on four receptions for 33 yards.

Final Observations

Cleveland Browns

Cleveland’s offensive and defensive units were outclassed in this game, being outgained 421-237 on the day. Cleveland had fewer penalties than Pittsburgh and forced three turnovers to Pittsburgh’s one and was still unable to keep this one close.

One silver lining in this game is the lack of quit in this team, down 33-12 with two minutes left in the game, this team drove downfield to score a meaningless touchdown, but it showed effort.

Cleveland will head back home with a 2-5-1 record to take on the offensive juggernaut Kansas City Chiefs.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Apart from a few slow drives in the first quarter, Pittsburgh absolutely dominated this game. Pittsburgh averaged 2.2 more yards per play than Cleveland and held the Browns to 97 total yards in the second half. The Steelers lost the turnover battle and had a special teams gaffe that would get some coaches fired but managed to overcome all of their bad play to take home a dominant victory.

James Conner continues to show he is not only a serviceable replacement of Le’Veon Bell but a better running back. Conner recorded another 125+ yard game with two touchdowns, giving him the same this season as Bell has in his entire career.  Pittsburgh remains in first place of the AFC North with a 4-2-1 record heading to Baltimore next week for another divisional matchup.

Photo Credit

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