The Pittsburgh Steelers will get the ball back after the half. They had a chance to be up 6-3 with a 4th down chip shot in the red zone, but instead they attempted a fake. Boswell got injured in the process as he landed on his hip (or possibly has a concussion). He wobbled off to the locker room a bit early.
If this game remains a kicker duel, that doesn’t bode well for the Steelers. Pressley Harvin III would likely be kicking field goals and maybe Mason Rudolph in as the holder?
Ben Roethlisberger taking at least some shots in the middle of the field. A small improvement.
Chris Boswell’s return is labeled questionable.
Ray-Ray McCloud took the kickoff out to the 27 yard line. The first offensive play is a handoff to Najee Harris up the middle for 5 yards. A pair of incomplete passes intended for Diontae Johnson on 2nd and 3rd, so the Steelers will punt. Ben was off target on 2nd down low, and directly at a defender on 3rd. Ben rough on that three-and-out.
Pressley Harvin’s punt was short, but there was a block in the back to back them up 10 more yards to Cleveland’s 24 yard line. TJ Watt against the back up tackle should be fun to watch the rest of the game.
Nick Chubb rushed for 21 yards on 1st down. Holding called on the Steelers defense.
Cleveland now on their own 40 yard line. Isaiah Buggs and Chris Wormley in for the stop at the line of scrimmage on 1st. On 2nd, Baker Mayfield complete to Jarvis Landry for a gain of 15 and another first down. Now into Steelers’ territory.
Harrison Bryant with a 22 yard reception with Minkah Fitzpatrick in coverage. A 4 yard run puts the Browns inside the red zone.
Austin Hooper makes it 1st and goal with an 8 yard reception. Joe Schobert in coverage.
On 1st and goal, TJ Watt tackled D’Ernest Johnson at the line of sccrimmage. TJ Watt was clearly being held there too. 2nd and goal, D’Ernest Johnson planted his foot in the ground and darted straight through untouched for the touchdown. Devin Bush and Minkah Fitzpatrick missed their angles badly.
An 86 yard drive ends in a Browns touchdown. 10-3 Browns.
The Steelers are going to have some 4th down attempts.
Zach Gentry for 2 yards on a dump off pass on 1st down. Najee Harris up the middle for 3 yards on 2nd. Not much there, but Harris did a good job of falling forward. Diontae Johnson ran a nice curl route to convert on 3rd down.
Najee Harris ran on 1st down for 2 up the middle. Diontae Johnson with a borderline drop on 2nd. Benny Snell Jr. with the dump off pass on 3rd down. He got the Steelers to 4th and 1. Najee Harris in the backfield, and he pounds it in on the second effort for the first down.
On first, Chase Claypool absolutely bodied his defender turning just in time for the 16 yard gain another fresh set of downs.
Najee Harris up the middle for 1 yard on first. The first down runs have stopped being effective as the Browns stack the box. No respect for the deep ball despite having a banged up secondary. Ben must make them pay.
Pat Freiermuth caught the ball short and made a nice move to break the first tackle. He used a stiff arm to finish for a total of 22 yards.
Diontae Johnson picked up 4 on first down. Glad to see them do something other than run up the middle on 1st. Greg Newsome was injured on the play. The secondary is severely banged up. Ben Roethlisberger has to make things happen. Newsome’s return is probable. Ben has a few plays to make the backup wish he was still on the sidelines.
Najee Harris off Trai Turner’s hip and he dove in for the touchdown. The Steelers are going for two without Boswell available.
Must not have much confidence in Pressley Harvin if they won’t even do the PAT with him.
Ben Roethlisberger with the quarterback draw on the 2pc. He punches in for two. A flag on the play, though. Some deliberation from the refs. Holding called on Kendrick Green. The Steelers will have the 12 yard line for another two point conversion. The holding was not paramount to the succesful play, bummer.
They go for two again from the 12 yard line. Ben got hit as he threw the ball by Myles Garrett. 10-9 Browns.
Pressley Harvin kicked the ball on the kickoff and it went out of bounds. The Browns get the ball at the 40 yard line. Total disaster with Boswell out.
Cameron Sutton made a nice tackle on Nick Chubb in the backfield for a loss of 2 yards. Incomplete on 2nd down intended for Rashard Higgins. Joe Haden broke up the pass. Jarvis Landry stopped one yard short on 3rd down. Baker leads the offense back up to the line. He was trying to draw them offsides. They take the delay of game to make it 4th and 6, and the punting unit is on the field.
Ray-Ray McCloud lets another punt bounce off the ground. Nearly ricocheted off a Steelers play for a Cleveland recovery. He has to start fair catching those.
Zach Gentry with the first down reception of 13 yards for a fresh set of downs. Ben had to loft it over the defender. A nice job by both players.
Najee Harris gets the carry on 1st down for 3 yards up the middle. Najee Harris picked up 20 on the play action dump off to Najee. He used a couple of stiff arms to propel himself to the explosive play.
Najee Harris with a nice run to close out the 3rd quarter. A gain of 5.
END OF 3RD QUARTER.
Pittsburgh is now into Cleveland territory. Anything other than a touchdown is a failure, as the likelihood of a successful field goal is low.
Chase Claypool for no gain on 2nd down. He had to fight to get back to the line of scrimmage to prevent the loss. Najee Harris on 3rd was able to punch it through for 5 yards and a fresh set of downs.
Najee again getting the handoff on 1st down. A flag down on the play. Defensive holding.
1st and 10, Anthony McFarland Jr. with his 2nd carry of the season. Tackled for a loss of 2. Kevin Dotson called for the hold. The penalty was accepted, so it will remain 1st down.
Ben hit Zach Gentry deep in the middle of the field. He lowered his shoulder for 24 yards. The Steelers are now in the red zone. 1st and 10 from the 16.
Chase Claypool refused to go down on 1st down as he caught the ball on a short pass and span through contact. 1st and goal from the 2 yard line.
Najee Harris brought down at the line of scrimmage on first down. The pass intended for Pat Freiermuth was tipped at the line of scrimmage. 3rd and goal, Ben attempts to Diontae Johnson, but it falls incomplete. Diontae appeared to have been interfered with, but no flag.
A tough decision here. No Boswell. Do you go for it on 4th, or kick the sketchy field goal for the lead? The Steelers opt to go for it. Ben called a timeout, didn’t like what he saw from the defense.
Pressley Harvin put the helmet on to kick the field goal. The specialists were on the field, but they were recalled. Offense is going to go for it. Ben must have talked Tomlin out of the field goal attempt.
Ben has his offense spread out, Cleveland stacking the box. Pat Freiermuth had to double catch the ball and the call on the field is a touchdown. He managed to drag his feet.
The Steelers go for two again. The pass is too high intended for Diontae Johnson. 15-10 Steelers.
The Pressley Harvin kickoff was much better this time. It didn’t go far, but the coverage made up for it and the Browns are pinned back on their own 20 yard line.
Baker Mayfield pass deep left to David Njoku. A pickup of 24 yards.
David Njoku with another reception this time on a screen pass. A pickup of 9 yards tackled by Arthur Maulet. Nick Chubb was able to run laterally and find just a big enough hole to cut in for the first down.
Back to Nick Chubb again on 1st, tackled for no gain by Alex Highsmith and Arthur Maulet. David Njoku with his third reception this drive (and only three this game). This time for 6 yards to set up 3rd and manageable. Joe Schobert in coverage. Baker Mayfield kept the ball himself on 3rd down. He was hit hard as he crossed for the first down.
Nick Chubb on 1st for a gain of about three yards. Chris Wormley did a nice job dropping the anchor and making the tackle. On 2nd, Baker complete to Jarvis Landry. Joe Schobert stripped the ball out and the ball was recovered by TJ Watt. That is as clear as day. Turnover for the Steelers. Absolutely huge.
Greedy Williams with a nice PBU intended for Diontae Johnson on second down following the short run by Najee. Ben went right back to Diontae on 3rd for a gain of 6, but just short of the first down. A huge response by the Browns. A big missed opportunity for the Steelers after the turnover.
Pressley Harvin out to punt and they are called for a delay of game.
The Browns get the ball at the 40 yard line again. Both times, Harvin’s leg has been responsible.
Nick Chubb for a gain of 12 on first down. A wide open hole. Not a good time for the Cleveland running game to find life with 3:47 remaining.
A gain of one for Chubb on first down. Brought down by Joe Haden and Terrell Edmunds. Complete to Jarvis Landry on 2nd down for the first down pickup.
Jarvis Landry wide open for another first down, but he dropped it – incomplete. The Steelers busted a timeout with a dead clock after the incompletion. Not ideal.
Odell Beckham Jr dropped the ball for a near touchdown, but Alex Highsmith called for roughing the passer. Kind of a ticky-tacky penalty when you consider the Boswell non call earlier.
Minkah Fitzpatrick in coverage on Austin Hooper on 1st down. Baker flushed out of the pocket. Wormley could have had the sack, but he was faked out and didn’t know Baker had the ball.
Alex Highsmith trying to make up for that roughing call gets the tackle for loss. 3rd and 11 for the Browns. Rashard Higgins called for the false start. 3rd and 16 now with a huge play coming up.
Baker Mayfield complete to Austin Hooper for 4 yards on 3rd. 4th and 13 upcoming. For a defense as good as the Steelers is supposed to be, they absolutely must close this game out here.
TWO MINUTE WARNING.
The Browns line up for the 4th and 12 attempt. The pass falls incomplete to Jarvis Landry. The Steelers get a turnover on downs. One first down seals the game.
Najee Harris gets the handoff on first down for a gain of two. Cleveland calls a timeout at 01:52 remaining.
After the quick break, Ben hits Diontae Johnson on a quick pass. He ran 53 yards and stays in bounds to force the 2nd Cleveland timeout.
Najee Harris ran for one yard to force the 3rd and final timeout. The Steelers called for a false start to stop the clock at 00:06. Game clock starts on the snap.
Ben Roethlisberger rolled out, killed the clock and then threw it deep to bleed the rest of the clock. The Steelers take 3rd place in the AFC north at 4-3. The Browns fall to 4th place at 4-4.
As of now, the Bengals are about to lose to the Jets, making the division even tighter.
END OF GAME 15-10 STEELERS.
