For the third time this season, the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers will see each other’s faces on the field, as they battle for the right to advance to the Divisional Round. Check out our Browns vs. Steelers preview below.
The Browns took care of business in Week 17, beating the Steelers at home, 24-22, to secure the franchise’s first playoff berth since 2002. The Browns arrive in the playoffs thanks to a healthy offense that finished the regular season ranked 14th in the league with an average of 25.5 points per game. The Browns’ attack feeds mostly off the team’s running back tandem of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, arguably the best rushing duo in the NFL today. When the Browns lost to the Steelers on the road in Week 6, they didn’t have Chubb, and they sorely missed him despite the presence of Hunt, who rushed for just 40 yards on 13 carries. With Chubb 100 percent fine now, he’ll definitely be an asset for the Browns team that ended the regular season third in the NFL with 148.4 rushing yards per game. Cleveland’s defense has been inconsistent this season, but the Browns will be facing Ben Roethlisberger, who seems to be running on fumes.
The under is 2-0 in the Browns’ last two road games.
Sure, the Steelers lost to the Browns in Week 17, but Pittsburgh was not 100 percent interested in winning that game as much as they wanted to rest their stars. The Steelers instead let a bunch of backups play against the Browns, and yet somehow nearly won the game against a team desperate for a victory. A better preview for the Steelers to look back on ahead of their third meeting this season with the Browns was their 38-7 stomping of Cleveland back in Week 6. In that game, Roethlisberger passed for 162 yards(14/22) and a touchdown with zero interceptions, while running back James Conner rushed for 101 yards and a TD on 20 carries. The Browns will not have a crucial piece on their defensive line in Olivier Vernon, so there could be a bigger breathing room for Big Ben in the pocket. The Steelers’ defense must be excited for this rematch as well. The Steelers finished the regular season third in the NFL with just 19.5 points allowed per game and second with 1.7 takeaways per contest.
The Steelers are 5-2 against the spread in their last seven games at home.
