Biggest questions the Cleveland Browns need to answer vs. the Steelers
Will Austin Seibert be able to turn around his kicking woes at Heinz Field?
Cleveland Browns kicker Austin Seibert has been struggling as of late. After making his first 16 field-goal attempts in his career, the rookie has had two rocky games in a row. His recent struggles do not bode well for this week’s game. There isn’t a more difficult place to kick in the NFL than Heinz Field.
His struggles began during the first matchup with the Steelers two weeks ago. The rookie had been flawless in the field goal kicking department up until then. When he missed the first kick, well, it was to be expected. You can’t be perfect forever. Then when he missed the next attempt, it was a little more worrisome. Luckily, the missed attempts didn’t affect the outcome of the game as the Browns had a commanding lead. It was easy to chalk it up to the old everyone has a bad game every now and again ideology.
In the following game versus the Dolphins, he again missed his first two field-goal attempts. Now, he has entered the ‘this is an issue’ category. Even though it wasn’t costing the Browns the game, it is evident that it could at some point down the line do just that. Luckily, he was able to knock his final two attempts of the afternoon through the uprights. Hopefully, that was the confidence booster he needed to put his struggles behind him.
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Now Seibert gets his first opportunity to kick at Heinz Field, a place notorious for kicking struggles. The crosswinds that enter the stadium from the converging rivers make it extremely unpredictable. Long field goals over 50-yards are virtually impossible and are rarely even attempted. Not ideal conditions for a kicker going through adversity. How Seibert performs on Sunday could go a long way in showing the Browns if he is their kicker for the long haul.