We meet again, so soon in the season. This time it’ll be in Cleveland. I’m rather looking forward to it. How are you guys doing as far as holding up physically?
We’re actually doing pretty well on the injury front other than losing three starters in one game but the replacements have done well enough. Ike Taylor is the biggest loss I think. Shazier will be back before too long and James Harrison looks to be back into game shape. Jason Worilds woke up in this last game. He was all over the place disrupting plays and the defensive line is coming together. Can’t get too excited about playing well against Jacksonville but the Jaguars did more to make the secondary look good than the other units.
The offense had an off week. I don’t know what to make of that except that they seemed to be resting Le’veon Bell a bit and shying away from downfield passes. That either means issues with the line or with Ben. I think it’s Ben’s hand myself. Either way it wasn’t a very impressive offensive display but the defense came through and they won so I’ll take it.
The guy who created the name Factory of Sadness, Mike Polk, Jr., is out with a new video. I find him hilarious, even when he makes fun of Pittsburgh fans. He’s a Cleveland fan, that’s all he has to hold on to anyway. Why take it away from him?
So how are my favorite yinzers feeling about this week’s matchup? It’s hard for me to be confident when Ben is something like 20-2 against the Browns, so I can’t exactly talk pregame smack. But I like our chances about as much as I ever have.
Pittsburgh got beat by Tampa and didn’t have an impressive showing against Jacksonville, so they’re not exactly firing on all cylinders. Cleveland is irratic as hell - for the second time this season they played so badly that they were trailing by 22+ points, only to flip some sort of magical switch and play totally dominating football and come back from it. I have no idea what the fuck is going on when they happens.
If they could put together a complete game like that, they could blow this game out. If they put together a complete game the other way, they could get blown out.
The defense is pretty beat up with lots of nagging injuries. The O is almost completely healthy, with PFF’s top O-line rating with top 3 ratings in both pass blocking and run blocking, they’ve been dominant.
Obviously it helps that it’s in Cleveland this time.
I’m going to tentatively say that the Browns deserve to be a favorite here and probably (>50%) win.
Who’s to say? The Browns have the 31st-ranked defense and the Steelers offense is top 5, but they can’t seem to finish. That is, of course, because Todd Haley is allergic to points and avoids giving the ball to Bell in the red zone.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to say this with a straight face, but this should be a good game. The Browns have a real chance. But favorites? That’s a stretch.
Defense is really beat up today, top 4 D-line players are injured or out, corners are all injured, and they were already playing horribly in the first place, and Kruger has actually been a surprisingly core player this year, also hurt.
How does Greg Gumbel have a job as a broadcastle?
Yeah, nevermind, you win. The phantom PI call on Skrine on your second drive compared with the non-call as one of your LB’s was bear hugging Gabriel out of his break a few plays later, it’s shaping up to be the usual.
Also, top 4 D-line are now down. Down to 3 active players, 5th, 6th, and 7th best.
Edit: Oh hey, I can take screenshots from replay, so if you doubt me I can post pics.
So, can the Browns lose an 18 point lead?
Haha, seriously?
I think I’d be more comfortable down by 18 than up by 18 right now. Browns have been in this position before and always found a way to lose.
This season might be different though. I want to see them score on the opening drive.
On the plus side for the Browns, at least they don’t have an offensive coordinator who’s afraid of scoring points.
Shanahan might be the best coach of any sort I’ve ever seen for the Browns. I’m not sure there are many people in the NFL that could turn Hoyer the Destroyer and his merry bands of misfits into a capable offense.
Okay, now I’m starting to feel good about it.
Congratulations. It’s official: I once more hate the Cleveland Browns.
You guys are usually reasonably classy when the Steelers stomp the Browns, so I should probably return the favor. On the other hand, it’s not something I’ve experienced much and I’ve got a lot of pent up shit to talk. What to do, what to do…
It’s weird having our games already over this early in the season. I’d like to play you guys again in a month.
Forget the Steelers. The Ratbirds, Browns and Bengals are now the class of the division.
Ugly, ugly, ugly. The Browns kept ticking after losing some key guys while the Steelers fell apart after that mishandled snap (and there was obviously nothing wrong with the snap itself). We have some playmakers on offense but too many guys like Moore and Wheaton dropping balls; never did replace Hines Ward’s ability to catch some tough balls in traffic. And the defense is just soft, Cam Thomas is terrible and Keisel, popular as he is, never has been very good against the run. It’s time to begin the Stephon Tuitt era at Defensive End but if McLendon’s injury looks to keep him out for any length of time we can expect more of this. Steelers’ fans always get upset at the notion of drafting a NT with a high pick since Casey Hampton was only on the field 40% of the time or something like that which completely ignores the fact that he got off the field because he and Aaron Smith essentially took away the other team’s run option. Think the safeties wouldn’t look a ton better if they weren’t biting on play-action half the game?
Must be a sweet feeling for Browns fans though. I have to admit this loss felt a bit like karma.
Talk all you want. We haven’t been talking because the Browns have been so bad. They’re not bad anymore, so now’s your moment to shine. I promise you I won’t hold back anymore now that a win against the Browns actually means something other than an easy victory.
You know what? I’m not even going to wait. The Browns can’t even draft well when they’re good. With Hoyer looking like the answer your guys pissed away a first-round pick on Johnny Football, a guy who might never get off the bench. I can’t help but find that funny.
March to the Super Bowl my ass.
I don’t care what you think. Stop wasting your time.
We still have the same amount of wins as the division leader. It’s beyond obvious that the team is not playing well but you can harken back to last year for promise that the sky isn’t falling either.