Quarterback: Mike Tomlin’s expectations for rookie Devlin Hodges were simple. “I expect him not to kill us,” he said early last week. Well, other than one ill-advised pass midway through the fourth quarter, Hodges did that. He only had one interception and he did plenty to make Tomlin feel good about his decision to bench Mason Rudolph. He was 14 for 21 for 212 yards and a touchdown. In his first career start in Los Angeles last month, he was the beneficiary of an early defensive touchdown and played from ahead the entire game. This time, the Steelers fell behind by 10 points, but Hodges led them to 20 unanswered points, including 10 in the final 2:56 of the first half. The interception wasn’t his only mistake. He also threw the ball away on third down with 1:45 left on the clock, giving the Browns an extra 40 seconds to work with on their final drive. Chalk it up to a rookie mistake. He didn’t make many though, and he earned another start next week in Arizona.
Grade: B
Running backs: Rookie Benny Snell led the Steelers in rushing for a second week in a row. He ran for 63 yards on 16 carries, including 21 on their final drive. His 11-yard run when the Steelers were pinned on their 1-yard line with 5:35 left might have been the biggest play of the game. It gave the Steelers breathing room, forced the Browns to start calling their timeouts and ultimately helped run four minutes off the clock. His downhill running style helps the offensive line immensely and keeps the offense on schedule. He has carved himself a role even when starter James Conner returns from his shoulder injury. Jaylen Samuels revived his role as wildcat quarterback and had 32 yards on seven carries. Kerrith Whyte had 10 on three carries to help pick up the slack in Conner’s absence.
Grade: B+
Receivers: James Washington has embraced the spotlight with JuJu Smith-Schuster out of the lineup. For the third consecutive game, Washington led the Steelers in receiving. He finished with four catches for 111 yards and had a highlight-reel touchdown catch. It’s a good thing Washington has emerged because the Steelers aren’t getting much from their other receivers and tight ends. No one else had more than 28 receiving yards. What hurt the Steelers more were several pre-snap penalties. Four of them were on receivers and tight ends, including two false starts by Vance McDonald, who made a big third-down conversion after his second penalty to make up for it. Still, four illegal procedure calls are four too many for an offense that can’t afford to get behind the chains.
Grade: B-
Offensive line: Hodges was sacked on the first series, but the line kept him clean for the rest of the game, giving him plenty of time to make throws deep down the field. They didn’t commit any penalties, and they paved the way for the running backs to gain 124 yards. It hasn’t been a stellar season for the line, but they’ve played better the past two weeks.
Grade: B
Defensive line: Defensive end Cam Heyward and nose tackle Javon Hargrave made huge plays to help the Steelers close the game out. Heyward recovered a fumble near midfield after Baker Mayfield was stripped by Bud Dupree. The turnover gave the Steelers great field position that eventually turned into three points when Chris Boswell put the Steelers up by 10 with a 29-yard field goal. Then, with the Browns making a late comeback attempt, Hargrave sacked Mayfield to take the Browns out of field goal range. The run defense was a bit shoddy early in the game as the Browns surged to a 10-0 lead, but they finished with only 106 yards after getting 91 in the first half. It’s an area they must shore up over the final four games of the season, because better teams will be able to take advantage of the shorter downs and distances.
Grade: B
Linebackers: Dupree and T.J. Watt gave the Browns’ tackles fits for 60 minutes. Dupree had 1 ½ sacks and Watt had a sack, giving him a team-high 12 ½ for the season. The constant pressure from the outside never let Mayfield get comfortable in the pocket. They also did a much better job of keeping Mayfield in the pocket in the rematch. His escapes two weeks ago in Cleveland killed the Steelers defense. Rookie inside linebacker Devin Bush led the Steelers with seven tackles.
Grade: B
Secondary: Veteran corner Joe Haden sealed the deal for the Steelers when he intercepted Mayfield with 1:06 on the clock, putting the exclamation point on another strong outing by the secondary. Mayfield didn’t complete a pass for more than 23 yards and was held to 196 passing yards for the game. That’s a good day against Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry. Beckham was held to 29 yards on three catches after he had 60 yards in the first meeting two weeks ago. Terrell Edmunds had six tackles and Steven Nelson and Mike Hilton had five to help keep the Browns to 279 total yards.
Grade: A-
Special teams: Chris Boswell had field goals of 39 and 29 yards to improve to 92% (23 for 25) for the season. Whyte had a 34-yard kickoff return and finished with 72 yards on three returns. He’s been more than solid as the kickoff returner since Ryan Switzer went on injured reserve. The punt and kickoff coverage units were stingy, giving the Steelers defense more opportunities to defend longer fields. The Steelers need strong special teams play with their young quarterbacks learning on the job, and Danny Smith delivered with an overall strong game from all of his units.
Grade: A-
Coaching: Tomlin beat the Browns with a rookie undrafted free agent at quarterback and without his starting running back and No. 1 receiver. He deserves oodles of praise for making that happen. That’s not to say it was all smooth sailing. There was some very questionable play-calling in the second half by offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner. The decision to call a pass on first-and-10 while clinging to a seven-point lead midway through the fourth quarter was the worst one of the day. Hodges was intercepted, and Terrance Mitchell returned it to the Steelers’ 30-yard line. It was a big mistake that could have cost the Steelers the game. The third-and-goal from the 3 that lost eight yards early in the fourth quarter was another head-scratcher. Not only did the play lose eight yards, but Hodges fumbled. Luckily for Tomlin and Fichtner, it rolled out of bounds.
Grade: C+
First Published: December 1, 2019, 11:10 p.m.
