Pittsburgh Steelers Must Stop Browns’ Rushing Attack To Have Playoff Hopes

When the Pittsburgh Steelers faced the Browns nearly four months ago, the deciding factor in the game was clear.

The Browns rushed for 171 yards while beating the Steelers 29-17 in Week 3 at First Energy Stadium in Cleveland. Nick Chubb had 113 yards on 23 carries on that Thursday night in September and Kareem Hunt added 47 yards in 12 attempts.

Conventional wisdom suggests the key for the Steelers (8-8) to beat the Browns (7-9) on Sunday at home at Acrisure Stadium is to stop the run. Easier said than done, though, as the Browns are sixth in the NFL in rushing with an average of 147.3 a yard a game.

Nonetheless, the Steelers must find a way to contain the tandem of Chubb and Hunt if they want to have a shot at making the playoffs.

To reach the postseasons, the Steelers must win and have the New York Jets beat the Miami Dolphins and the Buffalo Bills beat the New England Patriots. A loss would eliminate the Steelers, who have won five of six games following a 3-7 start to the season.

“When you’re getting ready for Cleveland, you got to respect their run game and specifically, Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said earlier this week during his weekly news conference. “They got to be a top tandem in football, and they need no endorsement from me. Their tape and their resume speak to that. We got to do a good job there.

“They won the attrition game last time we played. Fatigue became a factor as the game wore on. You can just look at the number of short-yardage opportunities they had in the second half. I think they went third-and-1 five times in the second half. And that just kind of speaks to how the game is going.”

The Browns converted just 6-of-16 third downs but were 3 of 4 on fourth downs. However, Tomlin said Cleveland’s ability to get in those situations was more important than its conversion rate.

“It speaks to an efficient run game that puts you in manageable third downs,” Tomlin said. “Somebody’s got five third-and-1s in a half, you’re not going to have a good half of play. You’re not going to have a good half of play from a getting off-the-field perspective, time of possession perspective, any of those discussions because again, every time they get that yard, they get a new set of downs and so third down is a component of it.

“What tees up those third downs, that attrition component in the game, is going to be a big component. It always is when you play the Cleveland Browns, and they have Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. When they get in third-and-1 and -2, man you’re dead. They can run it, they can throw it, they can do whatever it is they want to do under those circumstances and so that has our attention.”

The Steelers are seventh in the league in rushing defense at 106.5 yards a game. They have been particularly good at stopping the run game during their current three-game winning streak.

After giving up 215 yards on the ground in a Week 14 loss to the Ravens, the Steelers held the Carolina Panthers to 21 yards and the Las Vegas Raiders and NFL leading rusher Josh Jacobs to 58 yards on Christmas Eve.

The Ravens’ total in the rematch last week was a manageable 120 yards as the Steelers rallied for a 16-13 victory on Sunday Night Football in Baltimore. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick led the defense with nine tackles, including four solo stops.