For their own good, Steelers must keep Le'Veon Bell away

By Mark Madden

https://triblive.com/sports/steelers/14227662-74/mark-madden-for-their-own-good-steelers-must-keep-leveon-bell-away

October 29, 2018

James Conner is much better now than Le’Veon Bell was last year.

The latter sample size is small, the former even smaller.

But Conner is averaging 4.7 yards per carry and 10.4 yards per catch. He has nine touchdowns in seven games.

Last season, Bell averaged 4.0 yards per carry and 7.7 yards per catch. He had 11 TDs on the season.

Conner has had seven runs of 20 or more yards this season. Bell had three such carries all of last season.

Conner has had three straight games of 100 or more yards rushing and two touchdowns. That hadn’t been done in the NFL since 2009.

Sure, Bell’s performance last year was stunted because he missed training camp. He missed it again this year, don’t forget.

Even if Bell does report this season, it will take him weeks to catch up to Conner.

More likely, Bell won’t reach Conner’s level — or even Bell’s level from last year, which was mediocre — until next season when he’s with another team.

The Steelers must stick with Conner and keep Bell away.

The price is right: Bell would make $855,000 per game. Conner will make $578,000 this season.

The Steelers can’t rescind Bell’s franchise tag. They would lose the compensatory third-round pick and Bell might go someplace where he could hurt them, like New England.

But the Steelers shouldn’t want Bell’s toxicity and selfishness dropped into the middle of a locker room that has rallied to win three straight, doing so largely because of Conner’s performance.

If Bell shows, coach Mike Tomlin will start him sooner than he should, probably after a couple of weeks. Conner wouldn’t play much.

Tomlin doesn’t split the carries. When Bell was available, Tomlin gave quality backups like LeGarrette Blount and DeAngelo Williams an absolute minimum of touches.

Those who think both could play in the same backfield are nuts. That would require the offense to make gigantic midseason adjustments. Conner and Bell have different styles, so the blocking changes. If you put Bell in the slot, he’s Eli Rogers. Anyway, Bell wouldn’t want to do that.

Bell has moved on emotionally. The Steelers must do so literally.

The Steelers need to maintain a hard line on not paying Bell one penny while he is on the exempt list for two weeks, which would happen if/when he reports. That is reportedly what’s keeping Bell away right now.

That’s perfect. Make Bell keep himself in limbo.

Bell couldn’t come in and be better than Conner this year, or even effective. Not after missing two straight training camps.

Bell wouldn’t help. He would disrupt.

The Steelers need to keep Bell away. Rather, make Bell keep himself away. Bell watches the games. How could he possibly conclude the Steelers need or want him right now?

Lots of local microphone jockeys and ink-stained wretches bleat on about Bell’s talent, which is considerable. But it’s been too often dormant since the completion of the 2016 season.

If Bell shows up, it will not turn out well for the Steelers.

Bell will play too much, too soon and stink. Or Conner will keep the starting job, and Bell will be unhappy. It’s one thing to sit in Florida and watch somebody else do your job on TV. It’s quite another to sit on the sidelines where TV viewers can watch you watch somebody else do your job.

Bell wouldn’t be good. He was far below his usual standard last year after missing training camp. Why would he be better after missing another training camp?

Tomlin is the wild card. When Tomlin told Cleveland reporters he was “marginally pleased” with Conner’s progress, he was either dangling a carrot in front of his first-year starter or passively-aggressively telling Bell the job would still be his.

But if Bell never shows, Tomlin has no choice but to stick with Conner. Steelers ownership and management would be wise to facilitate that.

Unless Conner gets hurt, that is. Then it’s time to welcome back the prodigal son.

Mark Madden hosts a radio show 3-6 p.m. weekdays on WXDX-FM (105.9).

MORE STEELERS/NFL

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For Penguins' Sidney Crosby, scoring surge was 'just a matter of time'

By Jonathan Bombulie

https://triblive.com/sports/penguins/14227348-74/for-penguins-sidney-crosby-scoring-surge-was-just-a-matter-of-time

October 29, 2018

(Codie McLaclan/Canaian Press/AP)

When the Penguins set out for Western Canada about a week and a half ago, there was a zero next to Sidney Crosby’s name in the goal column.By the time he returned to town Sunday night, Crosby was the hottest scorer in the league. He recorded three consecutive multiple-point games, scored five goals, including an overtime backhander in Edmonton that will live on in perpetuity on highlight reels, and was named the NHL’s first star of the week.

Maybe he needed a few games to knock off the offseason rust. Maybe the rising tide of improved play from the team as a whole lifted Crosby’s ship as well.

Maybe it was something in the water in Banff, the Alberta resort town where the Penguins stopped for a couple of days before facing Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver last week.

Whatever the reason, the slump is snapped, and the Penguins are on a four-game winning streak heading into a home game with the New York Islanders on Tuesday. Onward and upward, right?

Not so fast. There’s a funny little detail worth remembering about the way Crosby started his season with a six-game slump followed by a three-game surge: The captain is probably the only person associated with the Penguins who felt like he was in a slump in the first place.

For a player with standards as high as Crosby, 13 shots on goal over six games with none of them finding the back of the net felt like some kind of disturbance in the force, whether it was classified as a “slump” or not.

“I don’t like to use that word, but I had some good looks,” Crosby said. “It’s better to have the looks and not score than not have them at all, but it’s just one of those things where I had some good opportunities and they didn’t go in. You just try to trust that you keep getting those, and they’ll go in. Glad to see they did.”

Some of Crosby’s teammates shook their head at the idea that their captain had started the season in a slump.

Those six games where he didn’t have a goal? He had five assists. His shot-attempt stats were the best on the team. When he was on the ice, the Penguins scored 10 goals and gave up five.

Winger Jake Guentzel said he wouldn’t mind having some slumps like that.

“I would do that in a heartbeat,” Guentzel said. “You know it’s just a matter of time before they were going to keep coming for him. A player like that, you know he’s going to break through at some point. It’s good to see him do it.”

Mike Sullivan said the coaches tried to give Crosby some helpful hints during the season-opening, six-game drought, reminding him that good things usually happen when he holds onto the puck below the faceoff dots, but they never thought he was playing poorly.

“The thing about Sid is, he contributes to helping our team win whether he’s on the scoresheet or he isn’t,” Sullivan said. “That’s what I’ve really grown to appreciate about his game. He really has a 200-foot game. He helps our team in so many ways.

“I think we all grow to expect him to end up on the scoresheet because he’s been so productive over the years. I don’t consider it a slump. I thought it was a matter of time.”

Jonathan Bombulie is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jonathan at jbombulie@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BombulieTrib.

MORE PENGUINS/NHL

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Penguins' Sidney Crosby named NHL's first star of the week

A Win For Their City

By Teresa Varley

https://www.steelers.com/news/a-win-for-their-city

October 28, 2018

The Steelers observe a moment of silence for the victims of a deadly shooting spree at the Tree of Life Synagogue on Saturday (Gene J. Puskar/AP)

On a day when the City of Pittsburgh’s collective heart is still broken, when families and the community are in mourning, the Steelers took the field with heavy hearts.

The senseless shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood on Saturday morning left 11 members of the congregation dead, others injured, including members of the law enforcement community.

But the Steelers knew they still had to play the game, and their goal was to go out and try their best to just help others even for a few hours.

The Steelers defeated the Cleveland Browns, 33-18, holding on to the top spot in the AFC North.

Yes, there was happiness over the win. But at the same time the Steelers had those victims and their families on their mind, and a moment of silence before kickoff set the tone for what would be an emotional afternoon.

“Let me start by representing our organization and saying our hearts go out the victims of yesterday’s shooting, the Squirrel Hill community, and the community of Pittsburgh at large,” said a visibly emotional Coach Mike Tomlin after the game. “I am a member of the Squirrel Hill community personally, and words can not express how we feel as members of this community. We are prayerful.”

Cameron Heyward grew up in Pittsburgh. He has family that lived in the area, and he did community service in the area as a kid. His heart was heavy, his voice a quiet whisper, as he spoke postgame about the tragedy.

“It’s a tightknit community, and a tightknit city,” said Heyward. “When you think about innocent people that have nothing to do with that, it’s horrible. It’s bigger than football. That moment of silence, it took a while to even think about football. There are a lot of families hurting. There are a lot of people caring and showing love. We have to work together and come together as a community.

“I grew up in this city. Innocent people shouldn’t have to suffer for that. I know we play football, but it’s so much bigger than football.”

Football, though, possibly helped even if just for a short time. For just over three hours this afternoon the Steelers played their hearts out for the community, for the city.

James Conner played with passion, with 24 carries for 146 yards and two touchdowns, while pulling in five receptions for 66 yards.

Antonio Brown played with passion, with six receptions for 74 yards and two touchdowns.

The entire offense played with passion.

The defense played with passion, holding the Browns ground game to just 74 yards, and the Browns air game to just 180 yards.

The Browns got the ball to start the game and used that to jump out to an early lead. The Browns moved the ball down to the Steelers 13-yard line, and on third-and-three T.J. Watt and Mike Hilton knocked Duke Johnson for a three-yard loss, forcing the Browns to settle for a Greg Johnson 34-yard field goal and 3-0 lead.

The Steelers offense struggled on their first series, with a quick three-and-out. The defense returned the favor, forcing the Browns to punt on their next series.

Ben Roethlisberger was looking to get the offense going, but on third-and-six he was intercepted by Derrick Kindred at the Browns 44-yard line. After going to the air in their opening drive, the Browns went to the ground after the interception. Nick Chubb had runs of 20 and 11 yards, but the defense tightened up. Anthony Chickillo broke up a Baker Mayfield pass, along getting the interception, and the Browns were again forced to settle for a Johnson field goal and 6-0 lead.

The Browns were looking to extend the lead, but Johnson missed on a 41-yard field goal.

The Steelers offense came to life in the second quarter. On third-and-11, Roethlisberger hit Brown for 15 yards, the first first down the offense converted. Roethlisberger followed that up with a 12-yard pass to Justin Hunter along the sideline. The connection with Brown continued when Roethlisberger hit him for a 43-yard scoring strike, getting the Steelers right back in the game, leading 7-6.

Joe Haden came back to haunt his former team on the next series when he intercepted Mayfield at the Steelers 13-yard line.

The Steelers took advantage of the turnover. Roethlisberger looked strong completing seven-of-seven passes for 54 yards on the drive and converted on two quarterback sneaks. He capped the drive with a one-yard touchdown pass to Brown with just seconds to go in the half. The 16-play, 87-yard drive sent the Steelers into halftime with a 14-6 lead.

The Steelers offense came out strong in the second half, moving the ball with a completion to Vance McDonald for 22 yards, and two first down completions to Conner. Roethlisberger hit Stevan Ridley on a four-yard completion, but the ball was stripped and recovered by Denzel Ward. The passion of the defense showed when they forced a three-and-out after the Ridley fumble.

The Steelers offense couldn’t muster anything on their next drive, but Jordan Berry pinned the Browns deep when his punt was downed at the four-yard line. And then things went a little crazy. Browns tackle Damon Harrison was called for a holding penalty in the end zone, giving the Steelers a safety and extending the lead to 16-6.

On the ensuing free kick Roosevelt Nix called for a fair catch, moved away from the ball and Ryan Switzer didn’t cover or pick up the ball. The Browns recovered and took over at the 24-yard line. Mayfield got the Browns in the end zone with a one-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Callaway, cutting the lead to 16-12.

A fired-up offense responded fast. Roethlisberger took them on a five-play, 75-yard drive that took only 2:42 and ended with a 12-yard touchdown run by Conner, who had 60 yards on the drive, that gave the Steelers a 23-12 lead.

Chris Boswell added a 42-yard field goal to extend the lead to 26-12, and the defense kept holding strong.

Conner, who became the first Steelers player to rush for at least 100 yards and two touchdowns in three straight games, iced the win with a 22-yard touchdown run, extending the lead to 33-12.

The Browns added a touchdown in the closing minute, for a 33-18 final.

Resilient Steelers show they might be up to the hype after all

By Tim Benz
https://triblive.com/sports/columnists/timbenz/breakfastwithbenz/14223928-74/tim-benz-resilient-steelers-show-maybe-they-are-up-to-the-hype
October 28, 2018


Vance McDonald had 3 catches for 47 yards in the Steelers' 33-18 win over the Browns (Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)

During the Steelers’ season opener at Cleveland, a two-score lead in the second half dissolved into an ugly tie.

It all started with one huge mistake.

In the rematch at Heinz Field, the same potential existed. Except this time the Steelers took a mistake and shoved it right back at Cleveland en route to a 33-18 victory.

“That’s what we want to do as a football team,” linebacker T.J. Watt said. “Make the corrections we need to make. Don’t make the same mistake twice.”

Leading 21-7 in the fourth quarter of Week 1, running back James Conner fumbled. That turnover was followed by a slew of strip sacks, blown coverages, missed tackles, botched blocks, bad routes and missed kicks.

The Steelers came unglued.

Only the Browns’ ineptitude prevented the Steelers from starting 0-1.

On Sunday, the Steelers suffered another epic blunder after the Browns yielded a safety at the 8-minute, 7-second mark of the third quarter. Leading 16-6, the Steelers allowed the ensuing free kick to lie on the field until Cleveland recovered it. Returner Ryan Switzer became confused when Roosevelt Nix called for a fair catch but left him to field the ball.

The Browns recovered. A few plays later, they scored a touchdown. That closed the gap to 16-12 after a missed extra point.

That bad Steelers team in early September crumbled after hitting a pothole. The first-place Steelers in late October rolled right over it.

“In a boxing match, even the best boxer gets hit a few times,” defensive end Stephon Tuitt said. “You never want to put your head down after they made a couple plays. You just have to keep going.”

On the next drive, the Steelers returned to a run game that hadn’t been efficient in the first half. Conner had just 33 yards on 10 carries at halftime. When the Steelers got the ball back, he accounted for 60 yards on four carries, including a touchdown to make it 23-12.

In the first matchup, Conner struggled after his mistake. The coaching staff eventually gave up on the run game, exposing Ben Roethlisberger to lousy weather and an effective Browns pass rush.

On Sunday, the weather was almost as bad, but the results on the ground were remarkably better. Conner finished with 146 yards rushing. He added 66 yards on receptions.

As opposed to the opener, the Steelers defense squashed any life the Browns had after they drew closer. The defense forced three straight punts. Two were the result of three-and-out series.

After last week’s kerfuffle over who should be running the Browns offense, does anyone else besides Hue Jackson or Todd Haley want to try?

Anyone?

The Browns’ perceived return to respectability after a 2-2-1 start now appears to be short-lived. However, the Steelers potential return to AFC playoff contention may be picking up steam.

“Nothing has really changed,” Conner said of the Steelers’ improvement in recent weeks. “We are just doing our jobs, trying to be a team on the rise.”

That “team on the rise” refrain is a Mike Tomlin favorite. His players were fond of parroting it after the win. If it’s true, the timing couldn’t be better with a game in Baltimore looming next week.

A victory there balances out the Ravens’ win in Pittsburgh on Oct. 1, and it would go a long way toward putting the Steelers — who will enter that contest in first place — on the AFC North throne for a third straight season.

“Oh, man. You already know that’s an important game,” Tuitt said with an ear-to-ear smile. “We have to make sure we do everything we are supposed to do, just like we did this week.”

Coming out of Week 1 in Cleveland, the Steelers looked every bit as bad as the team they had just tied.

Seven weeks later, they appear closer to the club that was getting Super Bowl hype before that game began.

Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TimBenzPGH. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.

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James Conner takes over Heinz Field, dominates Browns again

By Jeremy Fowler

http://www.espn.com/blog/pittsburgh-steelers/post/_/id/29093/leveon-bell-saga-7-6m-available-report-dates-trade-options

October 28, 2018

(Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)

PITTSBURGH -- The spin move to get loose. The stiff-arm in the end zone. The "Con-ner! Con-ner!" chants from the Heinz Field crowd.

James Conner is no longer a fill-in, but is a major catalyst for the Pittsburgh Steelers' 2018 season.

He can play. He has left little doubt.

Conner's monstrous second half helped seal the Steelers' 33-18 win over the Cleveland Browns and strengthen their position in the AFC North. Over the span of two drives in the third and fourth quarters, Conner gashed the Browns for 95 total yards and a score. The Steelers were reeling after several mental mistakes before Conner spun his way to a 30-yard gain to start a third-quarter scoring drive.

“I’m just running hard,” Conner said when asked if he’s getting stronger by the week after compiling 525 yards over a three-game stretch.

Conner started the game with 36 yards on 12 carries but finished with an explosive 146 yards on 24 carries along with five receptions for 66 yards. That gives Conner a startling 404 total yards in two games against the Browns.

That will do.

Steelers players kept pumping up Conner publicly over the last two months, and it was not an empty proposition. They feel strongly about their running back, with or without Le'Veon Bell. He's ready for AFC North football, and so is an offensive line that has been stellar the last three weeks.

“He wants to be that guy,” guard Ramon Foster said of Conner. “He plays with a passion that’s out of this world.”

But the cheers for Conner and the offense sounded more like boos early on after the Steelers failed to record a first down in the first 17 minutes. Completions to the sideline to Antonio Brown and Justin Hunter loosened things up.

The avalanche of big plays followed. The Ben Roethlisberger-Brown improv show commenced, with the quarterback escaping the rush and throwing on the run to a sprinting Brown for the 43-yard score. Minutes later, cornerback Joe Haden went high for the interception on a Baker Mayfield deep ball.

The Steelers have been brilliant all year in the two-minute offense to end the first half. A 16-play, 87-yard scoring drive spanning seven-plus minutes marked the Steelers' fourth touchdown of the season in the final two minutes before halftime. Roethlisberger capped the game with a 1-yard score to Brown on a screen pass with 8 seconds left.

The Steelers gave the Browns too much life in the third quarter with four mental mistakes in a span of minutes. Pittsburgh had a 10-point lead and the ball with eight minutes left in the third, but the Browns recovered a free kick that the Steelers let drop. Returner Ryan Switzer admitted he and Brown thought the play was dead when the ball hit the ground. Fullback Roosevelt Nixappeared to call for the ball but didn’t secure it. “Just a miscommunication,” said Switzer, who stressed he has to know the rules.

The Browns recovered, then marched downfield with the help of three Steelers penalties for roughing the passer, holding and pass interference. Mayfield's touchdown pass to Antonio Callaway cut the Steelers' lead to 12.

On the Steelers' next offensive play, though, Conner spun off a Browns lineman, broke a tackle and pointed to the Heinz Field turf after his 30-yard game, calling it "my house."

Turns out he was just getting started.

He sealed the game with a 22-yard score and multiple "Let's go!" yells from the sideline. That was Conner’s seventh rush of 20-plus yards, four more than Bell recorded all of last season.

“We knew the splash plays were on the way,” Conner said.

Conner has 922 scrimmage yards, the second-most in franchise history through the first seven games of a season, trailing Bell’s 938 in 2014. That number pairs well with an improving defense that hasn’t allowed more than 21 points in the last three weeks.

The Steelers had two sacks but should have had many more. They were hitting Mayfield early and often. The Browns had 85 second-half yards, most of which came on a last-minute drive in garbage time. The defense looks more organized after several miscommunications and missed tackles in the first month.

“We decided to put all the BS aside,” said linebacker Bud Dupree, who got held in the end zone to draw a safety.

Browns lose 33-18 to Steelers amid report that OC Todd Haley could soon be fired

By Mary Kay Cabot, cleveland.com

https://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2018/10/browns_steelers_4.html

October 28, 2018

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt sacks Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield in the second half, October 28, 2018, at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh.(John Kuntz, cleveland.com)

PITTSBURGH -- The Browns got blown out by the Steelers on Sunday, and now they could also soon wipe out their offensive coordinator in Todd Haley.

The Browns' embarrassing 33-18 loss  -- after a 6-0 first-quarter lead -- began amid a report by by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport that Haley could be fired soon if the dysfunction on offense doesn't get resolved soon.

It followed a week in which Browns head coach Hue Jackson vowed after the loss to the Bucs to dive in and help revive the struggling unit. But he toned down his remarks the next day, saying he wouldn't take over the play calling.

Still, tension remained between the two offensive minds as they headed into the game, their third straight loss and fourth in five games, and the pregame report fanned the flames.

After the game, Jackson said he didn't want to "give legs" to the Haley report.

"Guys I said what I said last week. . . I said I wanted to help. That's it," Jackson said. "Today it's this big old thing. . . The only thing that's going on is we need to get better."

The loss dropped the Browns to 2-5-1 and marked their first loss in the AFC North. They also lost for the 15th straight time in Pittsburgh and 25th on the road overall. The NFL record for consecutive road losses is 26, set by the Lions from 2007-2010.

The Steelers, first in the AFC North, improved to 4-2-1. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (257 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT, 94.3 rating) improved to 22-2-1 against the Browns. He also improved to 12-0 at home against Cleveland. 

The score wasn't as close as it looked. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield threw a TD pass to Seth DeValve with 6 seconds left to make it a little more respectable. And it won't get any easier. The high-flying Kansas City Chiefs are coming to town next Sunday.

The situation between Jackson and Haley was so bizarre that at one point in the third quarter, Steelers receiver Antonio Brown hugged Haley, his longtime Steelers coordinator, in front of the Browns bench. Before the game, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and Jackson spent time chatting on the field, which is not unusual.

Once again, the Browns offense sputtered and Mayfield, who came up limping after a fourth-quarter sack, struggled. The Browns managed only 12 points despite two more takeaways by the defense for a league-high total of 22 this season. The Browns converted the two takeaways into only three points.

They did manage a touchdown, but needed a huge gaffe by the Steelers to pull it off, when they let a free kick skip past them and the Browns recovered at the Steelers' 24. Antonio Callaway eventually caught a 1-yard TD pass, Mayfield's seventh of the season.

Mayfield completed 22-of-36 attempts for 180 yards with two TDs and 1 interception for a 80.8 rating. He struggled to get the ball to Jarvis Landry, who caught eight passes but for only 39 yards.

While the offense was busy not scoring, the defense was once again gashed by Steelers running back James Conner, this time for 146 yards yards and two TDs on 24 carries. In the first meeting, he rushed for 135 yards.

Steelers receiver Antonio Brown also caught two TD passes, including a 43-yarder.

Huge turn of events 

The Steelers downed a punt at the Browns' 4 and then Browns left tackle Desmond Harrison was flagged for holding in the end zone, a safety for the Steelers that made it 16-6 with 8:07 left in the third.

Jackson was asked postgame about Harrison's day against the Steelers.

"He's got to get better," Jackson said. "That wasn't his best outing. He's got to grow from it."

But after the safety, the Steelers' Ryan Switzer watched Britton Colquitt's free kick skitter past him, not realizing that the Browns could recover it. Denzel Rice fell on the ball at the Steelers' 24 for a huge swing in field position.

The Steelers continued to implode on the drive after the big miscue, with Cam Heyward getting flagged for unnecessary roughness on Mayfield, David Njoku drawing a pass interference in the end zone zone, and Joe Haden committing defensive holding at the Steelers' 1. Antonio Callaway caught a 1-yard TD at the left side of the end zone to make it 16-12. Kicker Greg Joseph, who had missed a 41-yard field goal wide right in the second quarter, pushed the extra point wide right.

But the Steelers marched right back down the field field, behind some long runs by James Conner, including a 12-yarder for a TD that increased the Steelers' lead to 23-12 with 2:42 left in the third.

They tacked on a 42-yard field goal to make it 26-12 with 13:29 left in the game.

Derrick Kindred's strip and a 3-and-out

With the Steelers up 14-6 and threatening to score, Browns defensive back Derrick Kindred stripped running back Stevan Ridley of the ball after a 4-yard pass and Denzel Ward recovered. It was the Browns' second takeaway of the afternoon, coming on the heels of Kindred's first-quarter interception.

Once again, the offense wasn't able to cash in. The Browns went three-and-out on two Nick Chubb runs, including one for a loss, and a Mayfield overthrow to Jarvis Landry on third down. On the pick, they managed only a field goal. That made for a league-high 22 takeaways and only 34 points produced off those turnovers.   

First-half numbers

The Browns trailed 14-6 at the half on two touchdown catches by Steelers receiver Antonio Brown and two field goals by Greg Joseph. Mayfield completed 10-of-19 attempts for 91 yards in the first half with no touchdowns and one interception for a 44.0 rating. The Browns were hurt by having to settle for field goals instead of scoring touchdowns. They were 0-1 in the red zone, and got only three points out of Kindred's interception.  

Joe Haden's pick and AB's 2nd TD

Haden, the former Browns cornerback, picked off Mayfield on a deep ball intended for Damion Ratley at the Steelers 13 with 7:20 left in the half. It was Haden's first pick of the season.

Roethlisberger and the Steelers then embarked on a 16-play, 87-yard drive that ended in a 1-yard TD pass to Brown on a bubble screen with 8 seconds left in the half to make it 14-6. It was Haden's first pick of the season and Mayfield's sixth interception.

Last week, it was former Browns defensive lineman Carl Nassib getting revenge on the Browns for the Bucs, including a third-down sack of Mayfield in overtime, and this week it was Haden.

AB's 43-yard TD catch

Brown caught a 43-yard TD pass from Roethlisberger after the receiver got behind Denzel Ward. Roethlisberger stepped up in the pocket and hit Brown down the left side to put the Steelers up 7-6 with 11:26 left in the half. Ward thought he was getting safety help from Kindred but it never materialized.    

The touchdown came after Greg Joseph missed a 41-yard field goal wide right to start Pittsburgh at their 31.  

Kindred's pick

Kindred picked off Roethlisberger on a pass intended for JuJu Smith-Schuster and deflected by Christian Kirksey with 4:54 left in the first quarter. But the Browns could only convert it into a 45-yard field goal by Joseph. Mayfield was almost picked off on third down by linebacker Anthony Chickillo on a short pass over the middle.

Browns strike first

The Browns have preached faster starts for weeks, and marched downfield on the opening drive to the 13. But the drive stalled when Duke Johnson was knocked back 3 yards to the 16. Joseph kicked a 34-yard field goal to put the Browns up 3-0 with 9:10 left in the first quarter. Mayfield completed 6-of-7 attempts on the drive for 57 yards, completing passes to four different receivers. 

Next

The Browns host the Chiefs next Sunday at 1 p.m.