Biggest Browns-Pittsburgh game in 13 years

By STEVE KING

Is this — Sunday’s trip to face the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field — the biggest game the Browns have played since 2007?

Yes, it is. Without question, it is.

With the Steelers (4-0) leading the pack and the Browns and Baltimore Ravens, tied at 4-1, right behind them, first place in the AFC North is on the line. When’s the last time you could say that about a Browns game this late in the season?

THE CLEVELAND FRICKIN BROWNS ARE 4 AND 1!!!!!!!!!!!!

DAWG CHECK! pic.twitter.com/oovtg8iRTD

— 🐶DAWG CHECK🐶 (4-1) #BeatPittsburgh (@BackerBrowns_IN) October 11, 2020

That would be 2007 — a whopping 13 years ago, for goodness sake — when the Browns went 10-6 and tied for first place with the Steelers, but lost the division title on tie-breakers by virtue of having dropped both games to Pittsburgh. They also tied with the Tennessee Titans for the last wild-card playoff spot, but lost out on tie-breakers again.

It remains the best season, record-wise, the Browns have had in the expansion era, but they have nothing tangible to show for it. In the only year they made the playoffs, 2002, they finished 9-7 in earning a wild-card spot.

Related: The RunDown Browns-Steelers

The 2007 Browns had a chance in the next-to-last regular-season game to clinch a playoff spot by winning on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals, a team they had beaten 51-45 early in the year, but they lost 19-14 on a comedy of errors, by both players and coaches.

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That was a long time ago, just as 1994, the , last time the Browns were 4-1, was a long time ago, and just as 2009, the last time the Browns won four in a row (as they have currently), was a long time ago.

Enough is enough. It’s high time — way, way, way past high time, really — for this team, and this organization, to start doing positive things to which future Browns clubs will hearken back for perspective. It’s all out there for the Browns now following their fast start.

Cleveland Browns:

• “Odell Beckham Jr. sent home with unknown illness” (ESPN) – “Stefanski said Beckham hadn’t tested positive for COVID-19 but that the team was taking action by keeping him away from the practice facility out of ‘an abundance of caution.’”
• Monday Night Football born 50 years ago in Cleveland (BDD Weekly)
• “Baker Mayfield still limited but feeling better and ‘trending in the right direction’” (BrownsZone) – “Baker Mayfield was feeling better Thursday and scheduled to throw more as he deals with sore ribs, coach Kevin Stefanski said.”
• “Browns’ Jarvis Landry idle again with rib and hip injuries in preparation for the Steelers” (cleveland.com) – “Landry literally crawled off the field after the play, and then returned later on the drive after missing about five plays.”
• Favorite Browns-Cowboys game of all-time (BDD Weekly)
• “Browns’ Kevin Stefanski cited as role model for mask use by Cleveland doctor” (WKYC) – “Dr. David Margolius of MetroHealth in Cleveland cited Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski as a good role model for his mask use amid the coronavirus pandemic.”
• “When the Browns needed him, Myles Garrett answered the bell every time” (WFNY) – “The Cleveland Browns beat the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, 32-23, to move to 4-1 on the season. The game was a weird one with different trends and flows.”

• “Browns’ QB Mayfield Limited In Practice With Rib Injury” (AP) – “Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield’s ribs are still sore and he’ll be limited in practice Wednesday as Cleveland prepares to play the unbeaten Pittsburgh Steelers.”
• “Browns back Myles Garrett, Kareem Hunt says Sunday’s Steelers game for the DE and fans” (92.3 The Fan) – “Hunt is confident Garrett will be able to handle the hostility from the fans who will attend as well as any extra attention from the Steelers.”
• “Bill Callahan a core ‘asset’ for Browns offensive line’s big start” (Browns.com) – “The play-calling has been opportunistic. The top playmakers have dazzled when the football is in their hands. The cohesion of the group at a whole has grown more evident every week.”
• “The Kevin Stefanski Ripple Effect” (SI.com) – “Outside of week one of the season, no one is talking about Stefanski in terms of being a rookie head coach. It’s entirely a discussion about how smoothly the Browns are operating during games to this point.”
• “The Significance of the 4-1 Start for the Browns Playoff Chances” (OBR) – “It has been talked about before and after the Cleveland Browns win over the Colts last Sunday, that the Cleveland Browns 4-1 start is the best since the 1994 season.”
• “Browns sign CB Robert Jackson to active roster from practice squad” (BrownsWire) – “Faced with an opening on the active roster with CB Greedy Williams going on injured reserve, the Cleveland Browns chose to promote from within.”

NFL:

• “NFL CMO Dr. Allen Sills: Players will be held out of practice, games due to flu-like symptoms” (NFL.com) – “Symptoms such as coughs, sore throats and stuffy noses will be reasons to send someone home for the day, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.”
• “Report: Le’Veon Bell choosing between Dolphins, Chiefs” (PFT) – “Bell has narrowed his choices to the Dolphins or the Chiefs, TheAthletic.com reports. The Dolphins play the Jets, Bell’s former team, on Sunday.”
• “Prescott’s Injury Won’t Significantly Hurt His Career Earnings” (MMQB) – “Much has been made of Dak Prescott’s contract situation, before and after his injury in Week 5, but he will likely end up in the same position next February he’d be in anyway.”

• “Tennessee Titans deal unhappy LB Kamalei Correa to Jacksonville Jaguars” (ESPN) – “Titans traded outside linebacker Kamalei Correa and a 2021 seventh-round draft pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Wednesday for a 2021 sixth-round pick.”
• “Patriots QB Cam Newton expected to return to practice Thursday” (NFL.com) – “Cam Newton was removed from the reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday and is expected to practice Thursday, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported.”
• “Pro Bowl will not be played this season” (PFT) – “The Pro Bowl is the latest event to be canceled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The NFL announced today that this season’s Pro Bowl, which had been scheduled for January 31, 2021, will not be played.”

• “Jets release Le’Veon Bell after exploring options to trade former All-Pro running back” (CBS) – “On Tuesday night, the New York Jets released the two-time All-Pro running back after less than two seasons with the team.”
• “Roger Goodell: Titans investigation focused on safety, not punishment” (PFT) – “PFT reported Monday that ultimately the Titans could get a pass for the team’s outbreak of COVID-19. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell seemed to confirm that…”
• “Protocols outline new isolation mandates for ‘high risk’ exposure to COVID-19 positive individuals” (NFL.com) – “…anyone with “high risk” contact exposure to a coronavirus-positive individual must isolate for five days…”