The Pittsburgh Steelers beating the Cincinnati Bengals will be tough enough. A frosty Steelers team, losers of their last three, facing one of the hottest teams in the league in the Bengals, winners of four-straight with their mojo back and real playoff hopes heading into the final weekend of the regular season. But a Steelers win wouldn’t be a shock, two-point underdogs certainly capable of winning this game just as they did in their first meeting against the Bengals.
To win the AFC North, the Steelers will need help. They’ll need the Cleveland Browns to upset the Baltimore Ravens. That would be one of the shocks of the season. In fact, it’d be downright historic. As shared by ESPN, with a win, the 20.5-point underdog Browns would have the biggest upset since the Lyndon B. Johnson administration.
Per Pro Football Reference, there have been only two instances of teams outright winning as 20-point dogs. Both happened around the timeline ESPN references. In 1967, the Minnesota Vikings shocked the Green Bay Packers 10-7 despite completing as many passes to Vikings’ players (two) as they did to Packers defenders (two). The year before, the 1-5 Miami Dolphins rolled into Houston and left with a 20-13 win over the Oilers, picking off Houston’s George Blanda four times.
Since the merger, teams that are 20-points favorites are a spotless 32-0.
There’s every reason to believe the Ravens will make it 33. They have plenty to play for in the finale. A win locks up the AFC North for a second-straight year and gives them the No. 3 seed, guaranteeing at least one home playoff game. With a loss, they risk falling back into the Wild Card seed pool and starting the postseason on the road.
Cleveland is showing little interest in pulling off the upset. Despite Myles Garrett’s dream of an upset, the Browns are starting their fourth quarterback this year in Bailey Zappe, who is expected to rotate with previous starter Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Combined, they have a 5-8 career record though if you want to kick a Steelers fan when they’re down, Pittsburgh lost to both men last season.
Like many teams out of the playoff picture, the Browns aren’t pushing any injured players to suit up. Today, Cleveland placed three players, including two starters, on injured reserve, freeing up roster spots to give young players a chance for reps. TE David Njoku, RB Jerome Ford, and RB Pierre Strong Jr. were all placed on IR.
Ford leads the team in carries and rushing yards. Njoku is one of the league’s better tight ends and is second on the team in receptions and receiving yards and leads Cleveland in touchdowns.
Entering the season with playoff hopes, the Browns are exiting it as one of the NFL’s most forgettable teams. Cleveland has lost five in a row, all by more than one score. If they make it six straight, they’ll be the first team to achieve that ugly feat since the 2021 New York Giants.
With the Browns and Ravens kicking off before the Steelers’ game, Pittsburgh will know what it has to play for by the time its game starts. Even assuming a Baltimore win, seeding will still be on the line. A Steelers win keeps them in the five seed. A loss could drop them to the No. 6 spot and accompanying ticket to Baltimore on Wild Card weekend.
Any given Sunday. That’s the saying. There’s always a chance for Cleveland to win. They beat Baltimore once already, though that was with a significantly better roster. For the Browns to do it again, this rag-tag group of unknowns will have to put on one heck of a show. For once, Steelers players – and fans – are rooting for them.
