Last-minute Changes, Reports and News Ahead of Steelers vs. Browns

10 seconds left 56 yards and a kicker named Andre Schmidt who had never hit a field goal 56 yards absolutely drills it Browns win 27 to 24 and that kick is the sole reason the Browns are ahead of the Steelers right now in the division both teams are at five and two and today folks they're playing in Pittsburgh for the first place spot in the AFC North The Browns haven't won a game in Pittsburgh since 2003, and we're going to break down the latest news, changes, reports, and updates ahead of the massive game this afternoon. Let's rewind to that game against the Browns because it paints a very interesting story. A lot of people only remember the kick, but you're missing why they lost that game. The Steelers started off very, very good. A 17-play drive. Rodgers hit Roman Wilson. A 12-yard touchdown. Seven to nothing. The vibes are high. And Cleveland scored 21 points in the last 12 minutes. Steelers scoring only. Three, Rodgers got sacked five times last time the Steelers played the Browns, and he only went 22 for 40 with two interceptions. He said himself, I miss a couple throws that I usually hit, and his last throw of the night was an interception. But still, they almost stole the game. T.J. Watt was everywhere, had a sack of forced fumble. We saw Jack Sawyer tipping a Watson pass. The defense looked fantastic, but they still lost the game. So that's a game they lost by three after giving up five sacks, throwing two picks. But since that game, they haven't lost. Yes, three straight wins, the most recent one in Paris. And all of a sudden, the team that we saw against the Browns just a few weeks ago looks completely different. We just hit 7,500 subscribers. I want to thank each and every one of you. Your guys' support has been unbelievable. I want to hit 8,000 very, very soon. So if you're enjoying the Daily Steelers content, you guys and Beast, make sure to hit that subscribe button. Let's start with the secondary today because that is the big piece of news before we kind of go over some more information surrounding the game. So today, they're without Brandon Eckles or without Denico Slaughter, two corners gone against the Browns. And obviously Joey Porter Jr. isn't on the team anymore. So who's left? They have Jamel Dean, who is one of the starters. Now ESPN has him allowing 1.5 yards per coverage snap, which for an outside corner is well above average and not in a good way. Though I do think ultimately he's going to be good and he's had a pretty solid season. The rest of the defense has held up pretty well. They're fifth in the league in points allowed and fourth in touchdown passes allowed. The question is whether that survives two more corners going down, even though the two corners who are down weren't necessarily huge, huge names. Now, against, obviously, Tennessee, which was Cleveland's most recent matchup, Denzel Boston and Casey Conception combined for nine catches and 153 yards. Now, for Pittsburgh's offense, we're still without Michael Pittman. They're still without Roman Wilson. Ben Scrannick looks like he's going to miss the game following yesterday when Brandon Smith got signed and Brandon Johnson got elevated. So, at the end of the day here, Rodgers is going to have to lean on DK Metcalf and Jeremy Bernard once again. Rodgers throughout his career with DK Metcalf, only has completed 58% of his passes to him. So that's, again, 21 games together, 58% of his passes completed. They're going to need him to step up and be the WR1 that they're paying him for. The good news is Alex Highsmith, he's good to go. Cleveland's right tackle, Titus Howard, he is also good to go. And he's going to be right across TJ Watt. So it's going to be a very interesting game. But the big storylines here, it is pretty clear to me. You win this game, you're top of the division. How will the O-line hold up with Aaron Rodgers? And maybe even more importantly, how will he look throwing to his wide receivers? Because let's not forget, the trade deadline is right around the corner. Now, Cleveland, they're 5-2, but they're not blowing people out. And I do think the Steelers have a very good opportunity here. Now, the Browns lost to the Jets in Week 5, and then they beat Baltimore 13-10. Now, against the Titans, they put up 491 yards. At the end of the day here, they're coming to Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh needs to be ready to play. Now, with the way the injuries are for this team in general right now, it's going to come down to three different things. One, the red zone. It's the one that might be the most worrying. The Steelers rank 27th in the league, scoring touchdowns in the red zone. Cleveland's defense ranks 7th at stopping them. That is a recipe for some very... Very annoying third and long as I can already see it coming. Rodgers said it this week. We just got to get some touchdowns in the red zone. Against Cleveland, field goals probably lose. One guy who can fix it, Darnell Washington. He has a touchdown catch in two straight games. If he makes it three, that's the longest streak by a Steelers tight end since Heath Miller in 2005. Number two, most important thing is protection. Rodgers took five sacks last time in Cleveland and in the three games since, he's taken nine more. That is three a game. And the Browns have already showed an ability to get through this team's offensive line. Number three, and arguably most importantly, is the run game. And this is where I think Pittsburgh has the edge. Cleveland's defense is 22nd in yards per carry allowed. And Jalen Warren ran for 93 yards on 17 carries in Cleveland, then 101 yards on 18 carries against the Saints. Add Rico Dowdell back into the backfield, and you can take the pressure off Rodgers by just running the ball. On the other side, Quinshon Judkins has 317 rushing yards, and Watson has rushed for 215. The good news is, the Steelers' front ranks sixth in run-stop win rate. And Jack Sawyer already gave you his prediction. You're not going to run the ball on us. And one bonus number as well, because it's sneakily been getting better. Something to watch ahead of this afternoon's game. On third down, they're at 98, or 38 rather, percent for the season. But 45% over the last three games against the Saints, it was 63%. So overall, 27th in the red zone, nine sacks in three games, and a Browns run defense that's 22nd. Win two of three of those battles, and I think they're going to win the game. My prediction, I think the Steelers are going to blow out the Browns. I know it sounds crazy. I just think they're in a very, very... Good position right now. ESPN's model gives Pittsburgh a 65.7% chance to win. Experts are split, though. CBS has its Steelers 20-16. Over at ESPN, two of three of their picks have the Steelers. Russell Wilson, though, went even further. He said if the Browns win this weekend, he doesn't know if the Steelers recover from it. Now, the locker room sees it the other way. Alex Highsmith called it a get-back game. In his words, they're coming to our house now, and let's look at what's on the line. Win today, and the Steelers go into the bye in first place, and they hold. The lead in the head-to-head split. Lose, and Cleveland sweeps them for the first time since 1988. After the bye week, you're right back into divisional matchups against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday Night Football, I believe it is. So that's how I kind of view it right now. More importantly, and something we didn't even talk about, if you lose this game, you're then heading into a bye week where Omar Khan's going to have to make some trades. The trade deadline's just less than two weeks away. That's going to make some very interesting decisions for Omar Khan and put some pressure on him. Before I wrap up, I do want to give my score prediction for the game. I'm going to have the Steelers winning 27-20. I think they're going to take care of business against the Browns. I did say blow them out. I'm going to hold that back for my actual score prediction. I'm going to go 27-20, but I do think for most of the game, the Steelers are blowing them out, leading by at least two scores. I think at the end, they might tail off a little bit in classic, you know, Aaron Rodgers and Steelers fashion. But I do think they take care of business tonight. And more importantly, they give themselves a very good opportunity to improve this team, show Omar Khan that, hey, this team is ready to perform, and I'm excited to watch it tonight. Speaking of which, the deadline, Tuesday, November 10th at 4 p.m. That's nine days. Keep in mind, there's been a lot of rumbling surrounding a few different names, most notably Brian Thomas Jr. There's been some rumblings about Josh Downs and randomly some rumblings about Alex Highsmith, which I'll have a video on potentially later tonight. More confirmation surrounding reports as Jordan Schultz says they want a receiver and a cornerback. So the two main receivers, Josh Downs, Brian Thomas Jr., it's going to get interesting. Folks, comment down below how you guys currently feel because Brian Thomas Jr. is the most likely player to get traded. Do you guys want them to pursue him? Would you rather pursue Josh Downs? What do you think about an Alex Highsmith trade? Hold your thoughts, though, on that for my video later today. But folks, a lot of stuff is coming. We'll keep you up to date. Thank you guys for watching. We'll see you in the next one.