When the Pittsburgh Steelers take the field against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday night, they will be looking to end a four game losing streak that has put their NFL playoff hopes in dire straits.
This is not the position anyone thought the reigning Super Bowl champions would find themselves in at this point of the season.
Currently the Steelers are tied with three other teams with 6-6 records and trail the Denver Broncos and Jacksonville Jaguars in the Wildcard race.
But how did the Steelers end up in this position?
The Steelers defense is struggling without Troy Polamalu, who has been out since week 10 with an injury. It’s no coincidence that opponents have been able to put up more than 20 points in the games Polamalu has missed.
On the offensive side of the ball, Pittsburgh fans have to be concerned about their inability to convert on third down. In their last three games, the Steelers have only been able to convert 34% or 13 of 29 third down attempts. The Steelers also found a way to lose two games where they won the time of possession.
If the Steelers end up losing to the Browns on Thursday night, this will leave them with a 1–4 division record and slim to no chance of slipping into the playoffs.
The Browns are definitely not the same team the Steelers faced back in week 6.
Their offense, led by Brady Quinn, has caught fire over the last three games, averaging 22.3 points per game. Quinn has started to look like an NFL quarterback during the same time span. He has completed 54.4% of his passes for 675 yards with seven touchdowns.
For the Steelers to be successful against the Browns, they must be able to put pressure on Quinn. Pittsburgh is ranked second in the NFL with 38 sacks and are led by James Harrison with 10. Cleveland has done a better job of protecting Quinn in their last three games, giving up only four sacks.
If the Steelers have any hope of defending their Super Bowl title, they must take care of business against Cleveland on Thursday night.
While the Browns may be able to hang with Pittsburgh through the first half, eventually the Steelers defense is going to harass Quinn and force him into mistakes. With Pittsburgh’s ability to run the ball and control the clock, look for the Steelers to come away with a relatively easy win.
Prediction – Pittsburgh 27 Cleveland 10
