Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh came into Week 13 just inside the playoff picture for the AFC, while Cleveland was well on the outside looking in; However, the real intrigue for Week 13 was how would the Steelers fare with their third starting QB of the season. Neither team felt like they were in control for long stretches of the game, but several big plays from the Steelers had them holding on for another victory.
Cleveland Browns
Quarterback
- Baker Mayfield: 18/32, 196 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 1 carry, 2 yards | 1 FUM
In another lost season for Cleveland, there was a moment of panic to end the first half as QB Baker Mayfield had his hand hit the helmet of an oncoming rusher on his follow-through. At the point where the injury happened, the idea of a broken wrist (or at least some bone in his throwing hand) seemed like the most likely malady, probably leading to starts by QB Garrett Gilbert. Luckily for the Browns, Mayfield was available for their first drive to start the second half. The second half was uneven for Mayfield, as he looked really good executing an up-tempo drive towards the beginning of the fourth quarter while also losing a fumble to end a drive (the hand was clearly bothering him) and ultimately having the game ended by an interception by CB Joe Haden in the two-minute drill.
Running Backs
- Nick Chubb: 16 carries, 58 yards | 2 targets, 1 reception, 21 yards
- Kareem Hunt: 7 carries, 46 yards | 5 targets, 5 receptions, 19 yards, 1 TD
RB’s Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt ended up on the field at the same time several times throughout the game – often being used as blockers and decoys for each other. Each RB brings something to the offense and it looks like they are slotting into their roles. Watching Nick Chubb Sunday, you can see a back who can grind a defense down constantly picking up positive yardage with great leg drive and good vision. Chubb is the more physical of the two backs, picking up a 4th and long one by vaulting over both lines. What Chubb isn’t, in this world-order, is a pass catcher. In each two-minute drill, the Browns took part in, Kareen Hunt was the running back on the field. When given carries, Hunt shows a lot of boom/bust potential as he was just as likely Sunday to lose yards as he was to gain them, though his speed always made his positive plays much more effective on his bottom line. For Hunt’s touchdown, he was open over the middle of the field in the red zone and just waltzed into the end zone without a defender within several yards.
Wide Receivers / Tight Ends
- Odell Beckham Jr.: 6 targets, 3 receptions, 29 yards
- Jarvis Landry: 11 targets, 6 receptions, 76 yards
- Stephen Carlson: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 28 yards
- Demetrius Harris: 4 targets, 1 reception, 23 yards
- Rashard Higgins: 3 targets, 0 receptions
You know that warm blanket that is the first to be grabbed on a cold night to provide a sense of warmth and comfort? Blanket, thy name is WR Jarvis Landry. With 11 targets on Sunday, Landry is stepping back into the role of QB security blanket, so much so that he was drawing coverage from CB Minkah Fitzpatrick on the final drive. The target figures between WR Odell Beckham Jr. and Landry should be +1 Beckham and -1 Landry as Mayfield threw a ball that looked like it was well on its way to OBJ that Landry ended up toe-tapping in bounds to grab in the first. The routes on that play were muddled, as way too many receivers and defenders were in the vicinity of that throw by design. During the first drive of the game, Beckham managed to get himself open at the back of the end zone, but the ball sailed over his head leading to the field goal. When Mayfield moved to an up-tempo offense, the ball was finding itself targeting OBJ more than Landry, but overall Landry was the receiver to own on Sunday.
At one point, it seemed like TE David Njoku was on the field for Cleveland; instead, it was TE Demetrius Harris having well-spotted footballs clanging off of his hands. During the fourth quarter, the Browns should have tied up the ballgame if it wasn’t for Harris dropping his second pass of the game. TE Stephen Carlson wasn’t much better, given that he should have been given credit for a special teams gaffe that would have led to the Steelers starting on their own 25 instead of their 1 (as it was incorrectly ruled).
Pittsburgh Steelers
Quarterback
- Devlin Hodges: 14/21, 212 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 5 carries, 2 yards
The quarterback false start penalty is a rarity, so much so that it was a point of contention with QB Kyler Murray in the preseason as he kept picking them up. The rarity of that particular penalty made today’s false start by QB Devlin Hodges jarring during the game. That, alongside an Eli Manning-Esque near-fumble in the fourth quarter (keeping the ball, trying to get to the outside, and then having the ball flutter from his grasp), sums up the bad for Hodges in his first start. As for the positive side of the ledger, Hodges and WR James Washington were able to hook up for two long connections, with Hodges best being a sideline throw that Washington was able to corral for a long gain.
Running Backs
- Benny Snell Jr.: 16 carries, 63 yards, 1 TD | 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards
- Jaylen Samuels: 7 carries, 32 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 22 yards
- Kerrith Whyte: 3 carries, 10 yards
RB Jaylen Samuels got the first carry for the Steelers, but RB Benny Snell Jr. was the primary ball carrier for Pittsburgh during this week of RB James Conner’s convalescence. Throughout the game, Snell started gaining momentum – the differences between being unable to turn the corner on a drive in the first quarter for a loss of yardage to picking up over 10 yards when the team is backed up to its 0.5-yard line in the fourth quarter. On his touchdown, Snell was able to break through on his second effort to pick up the score on a carry from the one that was gifted to him by a pass interference call on the play prior. Snell’s counterpart, Jaylen Samuels, saw some action in the Wildcat Sunday afternoon – picking up snaps on two plays during the third drive of the game for the Steelers. The most surprising aspect of Samuels’s performance was a first down carry in the second half where he lowered himself for contact and blew through a linebacker. RB Kerrith Whyte saw some action and at least at one point on their second drive, it looked like he was going to be the only back seeing action. Once that drive ended, Whyte was seen on special teams and a few other sporadic snaps.
Wide Receivers / Tight Ends
- James Washington: 4 targets, 4 receptions, 111 yards, 1 TD
- Diontae Johnson: 5 targets, 1 reception, 14 yards | 1 carry, 17 yards
- Deon Cain: 1 target, 1 reception, 5 yards
- Tevin Jones: 2 targets, 1 reception, 28 yards
- Vance McDonald: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 21 yards
- Nick Vannett: 1 target, 1 reception, 7 yards
When QB Mason Rudolph was the starter, there was a lot of hype around his relationship with WR James Washington stemming from college. That hype train never left the station – until the game where Rudolph was benched. Washington made two catches of note; 1) a long gain along the right sideline where he needed to slow down just enough downfield to catch the ball under a draped defenders arms, 2) a touchdown catch falling backward into the end zone while being interfered with. In both cases, Washington showed great body control to get himself into a position to make big grabs to get the team a lead. On the other side of the formation, WR Diontae Johnson was more targeted than Washington, but was only able to make one catch. On that one catch, Johnson was able to juke a cornerback with a stop-start to get around for a first down to help wind down the game. Johnson had a potential long touchdown just evade his grasp to end the second quarter, which would have been a boon to his day. Of note for WR Deon Cain, he picked up a defensive pass interference call in the end zone against him in the third quarter, which set up a Benny Snell TD. Neither TE made a mark on the day, though Vance McDonald saw most of his work at the end of the game when Pittsburgh was trying to eat up the clock.
–David Fenko (@Velcronomics)