The opponent was the Cleveland Browns, the second of the annual home-and-home between division rivals. The calendar has just flipped over to Nov. 1. All that was left was for the Steelers to take care of business.
"That's why you got to keep it about the main thing. It's about winning games and self-improvement," said Coach Mike McCarthy. "We're at a point now in the season where everybody has an understanding of how we're going to do things, what we need to do. You're getting in and out of game plans each and every week. I think we've talked about this before. I think training camp really, in my view, extends into September. October was really where you've got to get going. Then the real football really picks up here in November. I think we're in a good spot right now."
The spot they're in right now, today, is heading into their bye week fresh on the heels of a 27-6 victory over the Browns that served the dual purpose of putting them alone atop the AFC North at 6-2 and delivering a dose of payback to a group that had handled them a month ago on a Thursday night in Cleveland and really seemed to enjoy talking about it.
For Steelers fans, there are all kinds of fun statistics associated with the futility the Browns have endured at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers. Like this one from NFL Research: "The Browns have lost 23 straight regular-season road games at the Steelers, tied for the longest road losing streak against a single opponent in NFL history with the Lions at the Packers from 1992 to 2014. The Browns' loss also means they have failed to sweep the Steelers in the season series for the 35th straight season, last accomplishing the feat in 1988."
There also was one somewhere on social media that listed all of the WPIAL teams that have more lifetime wins in the history of Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium than the Browns' 2. And it's worth noting that since only the championship games of the WPIAL season are played in that building, the opportunities for the high school teams are far fewer. And let's not forget that Three Rivers Stadium was just a haunted house with a different address for the Browns, who lost 15 in a row there and were 6-23 when the place was imploded.
But this win was more about where the Steelers are after recording it.
Joe Greene has told the story of the time he gave relatives and friends their first tour of Three Rivers Stadium and described it as "a place where we kick a lot of ass on Sundays." In today's NFL, that's known as controlling the lines of scrimmage, and against the Browns the Steelers continued a recent pattern of doing just that.
These Browns who made this trip down the Turnpike were a confident bunch. They came into the game with the same 5-2 record as the Steelers, and they rolled into the North Shore with a chance at a sweep.
It was on right from the start, when the Browns won the toss and Coach Todd Monken elected to receive. A decision of a confident man, of a coach looking to set a tone. But by the end of the first quarter, the Steelers had a 7-0 lead just around the corner from growing to 10-0, and had set a tone of their own.
When the quarter was over, the defense already had 3 sacks plus a takeaway, and the Browns were 0-fer on third downs and their only first down had come by penalty. The Steelers offense finished with 7 first downs, 6 by rushing, and they had run the ball 11 times for 117 yards and a touchdown.
"I thought we controlled both lines of scrimmage," said Cam Heyward, who chipped in with 6 tackles, including 2 for loss (one of which turned the ball over on downs), 1.5 sacks, and a pass batted at the line of scrimmage.
"Especially when you get 200 yards when you're rushing, then on defense you hold 'em to, what, 30-some yards. That's something we preach around here. That's something we always want to do. When we do that, it's going to lead to a win most of the times."
On offense what has been leading to a win 4 weeks in a row now is the emergence of Jaylen Warren as a bonafide feature back behind a physical group of linemen. Since the right side of the front five was reconfigured in Week 3 with the additions of Brock Hoffman and Max Iheanachor, Warren has taken over and posted 4-100 yard games and totaled 848 yards from scrimmage.
On defense it has been stopping the run to the tune of an average of 55 yards per game, and on Sunday 7 different players combined for a season-high 8 sacks. Deshaun Watson did throw for 324 yards and had a pretty 94.4 rating, but the Browns were 0-for-3 in the red zone and 0-for-2 in goal-to-go situations against a defense that still has allowed only 1 second half TD all season.
From an individual standpoint, T.J. Watt now has 19.5 career sacks vs. Cleveland, which is the most by any player against the Browns in NFL history, and which made Watt the 9th player in NFL history to hold the sack record vs. multiple teams (Cleveland, 19.5; and Baltimore, 17.0). Watt is back to being a factor every week, either with his production (7.5 sacks at the bye), or the attention he demands from opposing offenses, or both. And the best development is there are others with their hand in the pile.
Against the Browns those hands belonged to Patrick Queen, Cam Heyward, Keeanu Benton, Nick Herbig, and in recent weeks it was Jalen Ramsey and Jamel Dean and Daylen Everette.
"When multiple guys can add to the party, it leads to this can be sustainable, this is something that multiple guys can be a part of," said Heyward. "We got to continue to keep doing it from here on out."
Yes, because after this bye week will come a 9-game stretch made up of 5 road games and containing 5 teams that qualified for the playoffs in 2025.
"I think we are exactly what our record says we are," said McCarthy. "We've really focused on improving in certain areas. I think we're doing that. I think our run defense has set the bar really high these last two weeks. We wanted to run the ball, so that was a focal point today. I feel like we accomplished that. We still have things to work on … Offensively, we definitely feel like we should have scored more points today. That goes without being said. It gives us things to keep working on. But we took a step in the right direction today. It was important for us to come out of this stretch 6-2. That's where we are."
Where they are is a good place to be at the start of November.
