When the Cleveland Browns take the field on Sunday, they will have the chance to do something that the franchise hasn’t been able to do since 1998 — sweep the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After knocking off the Steelers in Week 4 of this season, the Browns will be on the road, trying to complete the sweep in a place where they haven’t won a regular-season game since 2003.
However, that history doesn’t matter, because the game will be decided by what the two teams do on the field on Sunday. It’s set to be an intriguing battle as both teams are 5-2 and fighting for first place in the AFC North. Additionally, the game earlier in the year between the two teams ended 27-24, with the Browns scoring a game-winning field goal with 10 seconds left.
While the Steelers will be eager to avenge that loss, and silence Cleveland’s players, an NFL legend recently pointed out one of Pittsburgh’s flaws that could keep them from winning on Sunday.
Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner appeared on The Rich Eisen Show on Wednesday, and he was asked how far he thinks the Steelers are going to go. Warner, very quickly and vehemently, said: “I don’t think [the Steelers are] gonna go very far.”
Warner's reasoning? Scoring points is too hard for Pittsburgh. While this was a discussion about the Steelers’ overall outlook, Warner’s words apply to Sunday’s matchup with Cleveland as well.
Browns dominating Steelers’ dormant offense is the key to a Week 8 victory
Warner pointed out that Pittsburgh’s offense lacks explosiveness, so the Steelers often have to put together long drives to score points. The former quarterback said defenses love playing teams like that, because all it takes is one mistake to put the offense behind the sticks, leading to the drive stalling out.
That has been on display for the Steelers in their recent games, as it was in the first meeting against the Browns. Pittsburgh started the game with a 17-play touchdown drive, and while it was demoralizing for Cleveland, the drive was only possible because of multiple Browns penalties.
The Browns' defense locked in after that and proceeded to shut the Steelers down in the second and third quarters. Pittsburgh was able to find a little magic in the fourth quarter, scoring two touchdowns, but Cleveland’s defense won that matchup overall.
The Browns can win the matchup again on Sunday by simply not breaking and not hurting themselves. If the defense can do that, and Cleveland’s offense avoids costly mistakes, the Browns should be able to complete the sweep over the Steelers.
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