Two weeks ago, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns played on a snowy Thursday night in Ohio. Ahead of that game, the NFL’s official YouTube channel posted a preview video, which included predictions from 10 of their analysts. All 10 of them predicted the Steelers would come out victorious. It turns out they were all wrong, with the Browns pulling out a wild 24-19 victory.
Two weeks later, the two sides are set to meet up again, this time in Pittsburgh. After just beating the Steelers, it would make sense if some of those analysts felt less confident in the Steelers this time around. That is not the case. In the league’s preview video for the Week 14 matchup, all 10 analysts once again sided with Pittsburgh.
Understandably, some Steelers fans won’t feel that confident about this. The Steelers were favorites over the Browns in Week 12, and yet they came away with a tough divisional loss. Divisional games can always be tricky, especially in the AFC North. While the Steelers have clearly been the better team in 2024, all 10 analysts siding with the Steelers is a surprising show of support.
However, there are reasons to back the Steelers here as well. They rebounded very well this past week, picking up a big divisional win on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals. Pittsburgh’s now returning home, where it has won four of five times this year.
If the Browns have one thing going for them, it’s their high-powered offense. In the past three weeks, they’ve gained 443, 304 and 552 yards of total offense. They’ve done it behind some key breakout performances from QB Jameis Winston and WR Jerry Jeudy.
Fortunately for the Steelers, they’ve now shown they can keep pace with elite offenses. Pittsburgh scored 44 points (although one touchdown did come from the defense) against the Bengals on Sunday, outmatching a team with a more talented offense than the one the Steelers will face this week.
It’s clear that the Browns haven’t given up on their season yet. Still, the Steelers will come into this game having more to play for, and they will want revenge. Aside from that, Pittsburgh needs to keep winning to maintain its high seeding in the AFC. If these analysts are to be trusted, then the Steelers should come out with a bit more intensity than the last time these two teams met.
