I want to pick the Browns tonight to defeat the host Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday NightFootball.

They are the better team, no doubt about it.

But I can’t.

I just can’t.

Not until the Browns prove to me that they can win in Pittsburgh, something they’ve struggled mightily to do over the years, can I pick them. I would be ignoring history, and I can’t do that.

They can beat the Steelers pretty consistently at Cleveland — they’ve proven that in recent years, so that’s the history there of the rivalry that you can’t ignore, either — but they can’t do it consistently in Pittsburgh. I thought that 48-37 drubbing in the 2020 AFC playoffs was a breakthrough, but it was not — nothing more than a shooting star, firing up only briefly and then fading out.

Perhaps tonight is when the script over there gets flipped. Indeed, if it is ever going to happen, then it’s now, when the Browns have the clear edge in talent and are coming off a decisive 24-3 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in the opener. Having defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, whose unit spearheaded that triumph, is a big plus for the Browns, and that, alone, makes you want to pick them.

But I just can’t do that. It makes no sense. I have to see it to believe it.

I just hope and pray that I’m wrong.

AND ONE MORE THING: A lot has been written, especially recently, about special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone being the first former Browns player to return to the team as a coordinator. That is not correct, or even close to it. He isn’t the first, or even the second. Yes, that’s right, he is only the third to do so.

The first was Dub Jones, who was a Cleveland Browns Legend as a running back with those iconic early teams from 1948-55. He is the only living member of the 1940s teams. He returned as offensive coordinator from 1963-67, including being one of the architects of the stunning 27-0 victory over the Cleveland Baltimore Colts in the 1964 NFL National Championship Game.

The second was Dick Modzelewski, a star defensive tackle on that 1964 team in his first year in Cleveland. He played through 1966. He returned as an assistant in 1968 and stayed through 1977, serving as defensive coordinator in 1976 and ‘77. He served as interim head coach for the final game of 1977 after Forrest Gregg was fired, and was among those who were considered for the coaching job that eventually went to Sam Rutigliano.