Jaylen Warren ran for 143 yards and a touchdown on his 28th birthday, the defense sacked Deshaun Watson eight times, and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns 27-6 on Sunday, November 1, at Acrisure Stadium to take over first place in the AFC North.
Pittsburgh improves to 6-2 and heads into its bye week alone atop the division. Cleveland, which beat the Steelers at home a month ago, falls to 5-3. The Browns have now lost 23 straight regular-season games in Pittsburgh, which ties the league record for consecutive home wins over one opponent, set by Green Bay against Detroit from 1992 to 2014.
Early turnovers set the tone
Cleveland lost the ball on each of its first two possessions. Watson left briefly after a late hit by Jaquan Brisker that drew a roughing-the-passer flag, and Shedeur Sanders came in. His short pass to Harold Fannin Jr. was ruled a completion with Fannin down, but Mike McCarthy challenged and the call was reversed to a fumble recovered by Daylen Everette.
Chris Boswell missed a 57-yard try on that possession. On the next series, with Watson back, Patrick Queen and Cameron Heyward combined on a strip-sack that Keeanu Benton recovered at the Cleveland 45. Five plays later, Rico Dowdle ran 9 yards up the middle for a 7-0 lead with 7:57 left in the first quarter.
A tush push before the half
The teams traded field goals in the second quarter. Boswell hit from 20 and 37 yards, and Andre Szmyt answered with kicks of 32 and 49 yards to keep the Browns within 13-6. Then Aaron Rodgers moved the Steelers 69 yards in 44 seconds with no timeouts left. On second-and-goal from the 1 with 5 seconds left, tight end Pat Freiermuth took a direct snap and the left side of the line shoved him into the end zone. A stop would have ended the half; instead Pittsburgh led 20-6.
The game was decided early in the third quarter. Rodgers threw a short pass to 6-foot-7 tight end Darnell Washington, who rumbled 58 yards to the Cleveland 1, and Warren dove in on the next play for a 27-6 lead with 9:39 left in the period.
Browns come up empty in the red zone
Cleveland made three trips inside the Pittsburgh 20 and did not score a touchdown on any of them. Its best chance came after Denzel Ward intercepted Rodgers on a deep throw for DK Metcalf late in the third quarter: the Browns put together a 12-play, 68-yard drive, only for Watson’s fourth-and-goal throw from the 5 to fall incomplete early in the fourth. A late drive to the Pittsburgh 30 also stalled on downs.
The numbers
- Jaylen Warren: 17 carries for 143 yards and a touchdown, including a 51-yard run, matching his career high.
- Steelers run game: 200 yards on 33 carries, 6.1 per attempt, and three rushing touchdowns. Dowdle added 56 yards and a score.
- Aaron Rodgers: 13 of 25 for 172 yards with one interception. Darnell Washington caught three passes for 94 yards.
- Steelers pass rush: eight sacks for 41 yards. Queen and Heyward had 1.5 each, T.J. Watt had two, and Queen led the team with 12 tackles.
- Deshaun Watson: 27 of 39 for 324 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions; much of the yardage came after the game was out of reach.
- Harold Fannin Jr.: 10 catches for 154 yards. Quinshon Judkins was held to 25 yards on 11 carries, and Cleveland ran for 34 yards as a team.
What it means
The Steelers had run for only one touchdown all season before Sunday, and their offensive line controlled the game against a Browns front that had talked confidently all week. Jared Verse, who had said Cleveland wanted to “make Pittsburgh ours,” was held to one assisted tackle. “I stand by everything I say,” Verse said afterward.
“Bottom line in this league is you speak with your play, and we didn’t play well enough today,” Browns coach Todd Monken said. Cleveland defensive tackle Maliek Collins hurt his elbow in the first half, and cornerback Tyson Campbell was checked for a concussion. We collected what Mike McCarthy and his players said after the game in a separate story.
What comes next
Cleveland visits the New Orleans Saints next Sunday. Pittsburgh is off in Week 9 and returns at the Cincinnati Bengals on November 15.
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