After Week 1 their defense was too old, after Week 9 the Ravens had their number. Yet here we sit in Week 17 with the Pittsburgh Steelers, defending AFC Champions, waiting to pounce and retain the AFC North crowd should Baltimore slip up again.
This is the last chance for the Browns to show what they can do and make a big statement against a divisional rival heading into the final week of the season. Their playoff hopes ended long ago but you can bet they’d take an enormous amount of satisfaction from making sure the Steelers don’t win the AFC North, regardless of what happens in Cincinnati between the Bengals and the Ravens.
I’m a big fan of ending the season with divisional games and with the battle atop the AFC North heading into the final week it makes this one even better. So with that in mind let’s take a look at the thee areas to focus on this week.
Pittsburgh’s Wide Receivers vs. Cleveland’s Cornerbacks
With two players on the PFF AFC Pro Bowl Squad, you already know that we think the Steelers wide receivers are pretty good. Mike Wallace (+11.6) is well known because of the big plays he has delivered in the past and he has stepped that up even more this year. In 2011, he's logged a reception of 40 or more yards in seven of his 16 games this season. He’s reliable, dropping just three passes from the 107 times he has been thrown to, reeling in 71 passes and eight touchdowns. To sum Wallace up, he’s the kind of guy you want as your number one receiver. Antonio Brown (+12.6) has flourished in the increased role he’s seen this year, averaging 16.2 yards a catch on his 63 receptions. You’d like to see more touchdowns, just two as a receiver this year, and he has more drops, six, than Wallace but Brown is one of the best number two receivers in the NFL.
Their matchup with Sheldon Brown (-4.2) and Joe Haden (+8.4) has been made even more intriguing with the Browns cornerbacks coming off a game in Baltimore last week where neither allowed a single catch all game. Brown has turned in his best two games of the season after allowing four catches for 67 yards and a touchdown in Pittsburgh in Week 14. Haden also struggled in that game as well, giving up receptions on all three passes thrown into his coverage for 94 yards and a touchdown. He has also bounced back allowing just two receptions for 18 yards in the last two weeks.
Pittsburgh’s Pass Rush vs. Cleveland’s Offensive Line
The main pass rush threat in Pittsburgh continues to be James Harrison (+23.1). In the previous meeting between these division rivals he struggled, generating just two hits and two pressures. For the year he has nine sacks, 11 hits and 22 pressures – not bad when you consider that he has missed five games through injury and suspension. On the Steelers defensive line Brett Keisel (+22.5) has managed three sacks, five hits and 28 pressures good enough to be ranked as our 7th best 3-4 defensive end in terms of pass rush grade.
The Browns offensive line benefited greatly from Tony Pashos (+4.4) stepping into the starting line-up in Week 4. Allowing his quarterback to be knocked down just seven times in 12 games, Pashos ranks as our 6th best pass blocking offensive tackle. Unfortunately, he's been ruled out for this game and Artis Hicks (-6.1), who has only played 23 snaps since being benched in Week 3, is expected to get the start here. On the other end of the line is our highest graded pass blocking OT in Joe Thomas (+10.6), he might have struggled in the run game but he has no peer as a pass blocker once again.
The Return of Peyton Hillis
After an up and down, injury plagued season (don’t mention the Madden curse), Peyton Hillis (+5.0) appears to be the feature back in Cleveland once again. With 50 carries over the past two weeks, Hillis has rushed for 211 yards and a touchdown. That’s the type of production the Browns will need from him if they are to pick up the upset this week, not the 2.5 yards per carry he averaged in the home game with the Steelers. If reports are true that Hillis won’t be back in Cleveland, he’s going to want to go out with a big game to show other teams what he is capable of should he indeed hit the free agent market.
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