Despite the Cleveland Browns’ 5-2 record to start the 2026 season, the offense has been dealing with its fair share of growing pains. The biggest problem for the group has been its inability to run the football. It’s no secret that Cleveland wants to build the offense around a productive run game, but it hasn’t been consistent on the ground yet.
Things took a step in the right direction in the Browns’ Week 7 win over the Tennessee Titans. Cleveland rushed for a season-high 183 rushing yards on 6.3 yards per carry, and second-year running back Quinshon Judkins had his best game of the season — carrying the ball 17 times for 96 yards (5.6 per carry) and two touchdowns.
The Browns finally looked like the offense they were hoping to be, and it was a promising sign that they have turned the corner. However, context matters. Sunday’s performance came against the 26th-ranked rush defense in the NFL. The Titans allow 131.1 rushing yard per game, so Cleveland isn’t out of the woods yet.
The Browns did what they were supposed to do against Tennessee, but if they really want fans to believe that they figured the run game out, they will need another productive outing on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Steelers’ run defense is the perfect challenge for Browns’ improved run game
Unlike the Titans, Pittsburgh has a top rushing defense in the league. The Steelers only allow 91 rushing yards per game, which ranks seventh in the NFL. Their 3.7 yards allowed per carry is sixth in the league, so this should be a much tougher test for Cleveland on Sunday.
When the two teams met back in Week 4, the Browns ran for 112 yards on 27 carries ( 4.1), but the average was significantly boosted by Jaleel McLaughlin’s one carry for a 28-yard touchdown. Judkins, in that game, had 17 rushes for just 53 yards, which is only 3.1 yards per carry.
If Cleveland can have a better ground game than it did the first time around, and run the ball like it did against Tennessee, not only would the Browns give themselves a better chance to win, they would have officially established a productive run game.
If Cleveland does that, the offense would only get better and the Browns as a whole would be a much more dangerous team going forward.
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