All week long, we heard about how the Pittsburgh Steelers were facing a possible “trap game” against the Cleveland Browns, seeing as how Cleveland was 2-8 and Pittsburgh was 8-2 entering the Week 12 contest.
Unfortunately for the Steelers, that’s exactly what it turned into, as Cleveland was able to pull off the upset victory over Pittsburgh, 24-19, to hand quarterback Russell Wilson his first loss as the Steelers’ starter.
As ugly of a performance as it was for the Steelers, they still had a chance to win the game late in the fourth quarter. Pittsburgh got the ball back with 4:22 remaining and was clinging to a 19-18 lead.
All the Steelers had to do was sustain a drive to run out the clock and seal the win. Instead, the Steelers went three-and-out, which gave the ball back to the Browns with over two minutes remaining—and the rest, as they say, is history.
And the Browns actually made history with the win. Cleveland is the first team in league history to commit three-plus turnovers, have eight-plus penalties, convert only one third down, have under 25 minutes of time of possession, blow a 12-point fourth quarter lead and still win the game, per OptaSTATS.
The Browns are the first team in NFL history to:
commit 3+ turnovers
have 8+ penalties
convert no more than 1 third down
have under 25:00 TOP
blow a 12+ point fourth-quarter lead…and yet still win the game. pic.twitter.com/w6IeEgmSmA
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) November 22, 2024
This was just one of those games where both teams did everything they could to lose it, the Steelers just did a bit more.
With the loss, the Steelers five-game winning streak is snapped. On the bright side, Pittsburgh will remain in first place no matter what the Baltimore Ravens do, as Pittsburgh has one less loss and one more win than its division rival.
Things won’t get any easier next week for the Steelers, who will meet the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium next Sunday.
