It’s 1988. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? is America’s No. 1 movie. Gas costs 90 cents. Chuck Noll and Marty Schottenheimer were the respective head coaches of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns. It’s the last time the Browns swept the Steelers in the regular season, a drought they’d love to end this Sunday.
Even not realizing the history until asked, Cleveland WR Elijah Moore wants to break out the brooms.
“We gotta change,” Moore told reporters Wednesday via the team’s YouTube channel. “We gotta break these chains.”
Hard as it is to believe, and even knowing the Browns weren’t in the league from 1996-1998, it’s been 36 years since Cleveland won both regular-season matchups. That year, the 10-6 Browns beat the Steelers 23-9 in Week 5 and 27-7 in Week 12. Pittsburgh had a woeful year, finishing 5-11, and only saved the tiniest bit of face by winning three of their final four games.
Linebacker Jordan Hicks says throwing a wrench into the Steelers’ season is at the front of his mind.
“Absolutely. There’s situations where teams are trying to, they have aspirations. They’re trying to get whatever it may be, a first-round bye, be first in the division.”
For the Browns, spoilers and streak-ender are their biggest motivations for this game. At 3-9, their season is over. One that began with optimism. A tough defense, a chance for QB Deshaun Watson to prove doubters wrong, a squad that started a slew of quarterbacks last year and still made the playoffs. Instead, their season has been among the NFL’s most disappointing (closely joined by the Cincinnati Bengals). Watson was miserable before tearing his Achilles, the run game has struggled, the o-line isn’t stout, and the defense has underachieved.
A quirky schedule has the Steelers and Browns meeting twice in three weeks. Cleveland pulled off the upset in Week 12, but conditions and circumstances are more favorable to Pittsburgh this time around. Previously, the Steelers were the road team on a short week coming off an emotional win against the Baltimore Ravens, not to mention playing in a second-half snowstorm. Still, the Browns are a better and more potent offense under QB Jameis Winston, and there’s talent defensively.
Winning won’t be easy. Losing would be humiliating.
