The last time the Cleveland Browns came to Pittsburgh, they struggled on both sides of the ball in a 28-14 loss in the regular season finale last year. QB Deshaun Watson was 19-29 for 230 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, but he was also sacked seven times, including twice by OLB Alex Highsmith. It was just Watson’s sixth game with the Browns, and OL Joel Bitonio said that the team’s offense has expanded a lot since that game.
“Definitely more comfortable with the offense. We played in Pittsburgh now as a group know it wasn’t our best game at the end of last year, but I think we have that confidence. I think we had one game this year to kind of get some stuff under our belt, and obviously, it was a sloppy weather game and things like that, but the confidence in what we’re running is there,” Bitonio said.
“We have a lot more checks in. We have a lot more different run, pass run options that we can pull out. And last year, we had a little bit more just kind of basics,” he added via official transcript provided by the Browns.
Obviously, every team adds new wrinkles and tries to add and expand to their offense every offseason. With Watson taking over as the Browns starter late in the season following a suspension last season, it seems as if the team went basic and kept things simple for Watson. With a full offseason of him in the facility, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt and head coach Kevin Stefanski added to the playbook.
Week One still wasn’t a great game by Watson, as he was 16-29 for 154 yards with a touchdown and a pick, but the Browns won and the game was in the rain. Getting the win was all that really mattered, but Pittsburgh can’t allow Watson to get comfortable and try to hold him to a similar stat line.
We did see a cool trick play out of the Browns last week that should’ve worked, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if we saw some more creativity out of them on Monday. A road game against a divisional rival in the Steelers could certainly see the momentum shift if the Browns successfully pulled off a trick play, so Pittsburgh is going to have to be on their toes and ready for all possibilities.
There’s no doubt the Browns will enter the matchup tomorrow night as a better team than they were last time they saw the Steelers, and that’s true on both sides of the ball. After falling flat against the 49ers last week, Pittsburgh absolutely has to come out prepared for a fight on Monday and find a way to slow down the Browns’ new-look offense.
