By defeating the rival Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football, the Cleveland Browns did more than save Freddie Kitchens’ job. They have set the groundwork for a climb back into the AFC playoff picture.
Behind Minkah Fitzpatrick’s interceptions and Mason Rudolph’s ability to avoiding throwing them, the Pittsburgh Steelers were quietly emerging as the NFL’s biggest surprise team. However, their four-game winning streak came to an abrupt end in Week 11, as the fell to the suddenly dangerous Cleveland Browns 21-7 on Thursday Night Football.
The Browns win comes on the heels of a 19-16 victory over the Buffalo Bills, who, like the Steelers, were also a favorite to lock up a Wild Card spot behind strong defensive work. Both wins were ugly ones for the Browns, but in winning ugly, Cleveland has shown that its defense can finally play up to its potential after acquiring Sheldon Richardson and Olivier Vernon this offseason to create a vaunted defensive line.
Cleveland only sacked Rudolph twice on Thursday, but they hit him seven times and picked him off thrice. While the Steelers defense has been a top 10 unit this season, the Browns looked like the stronger team defensively and put together their most complete game on that side of the ball this season. If their defense really has turned the corner under Steve Wilks, then that could be the biggest possible development for the Browns.
While the Cleveland offense sputtered against the Steelers strong defense, Baker Mayfield did something important in this game – something that Jared Goff could not do last week. He did not throw a single interception against a turnover-hungry Steelers secondary, and in a game in which Nick Chubb couldn’t average more than three yards per carry, Mayfield’s mistake-free game made all the difference in the world.
Mayfield entered Week 11 with 12 interceptions, meaning Jameis Winston was the only quarterback with more picks on the season. Furthermore, Mayfield was throwing an interception on nearly four percent of his total passes attempts, right there with Winston for the worst rate in the NFL behind New York Jets second-year pro Sam Darnold.
Head-scratching decisions and back-breaking turnovers have prevented the Browns offense from taking that next step under Mayfield. Though the Browns could have still done more to get Odell Beckham involved against Pittsburgh this week, Mayfield’s unthreatening 6.0 yards per pass attempt meant little when weighing it against his lack of interceptions. On this night when facing a confident Steelers defense, the clean game was all Mayfield needed to ride his defense to a win.
Better discipline and better defending helped the Steelers become a surprise team in the AFC Wild Card picture, and those two things could allow the Browns to do the same. Chubb will have his big games and Beckham is always one game away from breaking out, but a consistently great defense can have a lasting impact on a team’s playoff chances.
Yes, Rudolph is an easy test for a defense, but the Browns needed this confidence-booster and can use this win over a quality rival to start a run towards a playoff spot. After failing to capitalize on their win over the Ravens earlier this season, all eyes will be on the Browns in the coming weeks, because these are the games that will define their 2019.