Cleveland Browns catch first break ahead of playoff game with Steelers

The Cleveland Browns won’t be at a huge disadvantage on the road

After securing a berth in the playoffs for the first time since the 2002 season, the Cleveland Browns were at an all-time high. Then, everything seemed to start falling apart for them.

Cleveland learned shortly after their Week 17 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers that they would be without their head coach as Kevin Stefanski tested positive for COVID-19. They also won’t have left guard Joel Bitonio or wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge for the game either.

While all that made it seem as though they were in serious trouble this weekend, the Browns finally caught a bit of a break. On Thursday, the Pittsburgh Steelers announced they wouldn’t be able to host fans on Sunday.

For part of the season, the Steelers were able to host 5,000 fans but in this game, they will only be able to have a total of 2,500 people in the stadium. According to Brooke Pryor of ESPN, that includes players, coaches, and support staff — which means the stands will end up with just friends and family.

The reason this is good for Cleveland is that it eliminates the majority of the Steelers’ home-field advantage. There’s no denying that playing in front of a small crowd will be nothing like a packed stadium — or even 5,000 — screaming Pittsburgh fans.

Perhaps the absence of those ugly yellow towels will help Cleveland be able to communicate with one another on the field as they look for their first playoff win since coming back to the NFL.