The Steelers and the Browns squared off today and it was actually a competitive game. There was much speculation in regards to Mason Rudolph and Myles Garrett, but it ended up being a clean game. Although the Browns won they didn't win the game easily. This is the first time the Browns have made the playoffs in 18 years! Unfortunately, they get to play the Pittsburgh Steelers next weekend at full strength. They barely beat the Steelers today with their backups and won the game by only two points.
The Browns ended up giving up 315 passing yards to Mason Rudolph today. Insert playoff Ben Roethlisberger next weekend and just imagine the possibilities. The Browns should be proud they made the playoffs, but they shouldn't be proud they barely won. They even made Playoff t-shirts after the game. How cute.
The Browns will gain the sixth seed in the AFC Playoffs and they will head to Heinz Field. The date should be set by tonight after the Colts game. It was said earlier in the week by Gerry Dulac that the NFL is eyeing a Sunday game for the Steelers. No times were said by Gerry in the tweet. The Steelers should be comfortable going into a second week against the Browns as they played pretty well against the Browns today in Cleveland. The Browns will have to march into Heinz Field after their 18-year playoff drought and beat the Steelers. It is a best-case scenario game for the Steeler's first playoff game.
The last playoff game the Browns played in was against the Steelers at Heinz Field in the 2002 wild-card game, in which the Steelers came back from a 17-point deficit in the second half to win, 36-33. The Steelers are 2-0 against the Browns in the playoffs with their other win coming in 1994 in the divisional round. The Browns' last two playoff appearances were both losses to the Steelers and they haven't won at Heinz Field since 2003.