CLEVELAND — These Thursday night affairs on the banks of Lake Erie are becoming quite the chore for the Steelers. Three years after a memorable late-week loss to the Browns in primetime, one that ended with an all-out brawl, Cleveland pushed over the Steelers legally this time in a 29-17 win that sent Pittsburgh to its second consecutive defeat.
Now 1-2 on the season and 1-1 in the division, the Steelers found a groove in the first half but fizzled in the second after taking a 14-13 lead into the locker room. They emerged either uninspired, unadjusted or both, and the Browns pulled away behind tough running from Nick Chubb, smash-mouth blocking from their oft-dominant offensive line and a sharp performance from journeyman quarterback Jacoby Brissett.
Chubb rushed for 114 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries, but that’s to be expected from perhaps the NFL’s best bruiser. More surprising was Brissett dicing up the Steelers defense to the tune of 220 yards and two scores on 21 of 31 passing. It was more of the same for the Steelers in their second game without T.J. Watt, notching just two sacks, the first of which came in the first quarter and the other in the fourth when the game was all but out of reach.
