Steelers hope to maintain hex on Cleveland
PITTSBURGH — The faces change, sometimes at a dizzying rate. The results when the Cleveland Browns visit the Pittsburgh Steelers do not.
Each fall the Browns make their way to Heinz Field, typically with a new quarterback and frequently with a new head coach in tow.
And each trip ends in similar fashion: with a quiet bus ride back home after another stinging defeat in a rivalry that hasn’t felt like much of one for more than two decades.
Your turn Baker Mayfield. And maybe your last chance, Hue Jackson.
Cleveland’s rookie quarterback will get his initial shot at the Steelers (3-2-1) on Sunday when the Browns (2-4-1) try win in Pittsburgh for the first time in 15 years.
It’s a drought that spans nearly a dozen quarterbacks — from Jeff Garcia to Colt McCoy to DeShone Kizer — and seven head coaches — from Butch Davis to Pat Shurmur to Jackson, who has yet to win a game on the road during his tenure (0-19) and whose status is shaky at best.
Unlike his predecessors, however, Mayfield brings a certain swagger that’s hard to quantify but also hard to miss.
Pittsburgh safety Sean Davis couldn’t help but notice it on film, particularly the way Mayfield bounced up last week in Tampa Bay after getting hit by Buccaneers safety Jordan Whitehead , a play that the NFL admitted should have drawn a flag but did not.
“He got trucked but he got up and ran into the defender’s face,” Davis said with a laugh. “I kind of like that. When I hit him, he’s not going to run in my face.”
Davis then laughed before stressing “I do like him. He’s a good ballplayer. He’s put some good stuff on tape.”
So, though, have the first-place Steelers. Pittsburgh has won two straight following a bumpy 1-2-1 start, a stretch that began with a strange 21-all tie in Cleveland in Week 1.
The Steelers turned it over six times in the rain and wind, including a fourth-quarter fumble by running back James Conner that sparked a late Browns’ rally and spoiled an otherwise spectacular day by Conner in his first NFL start.
Seven weeks later, Conner is still atop the depth chart and thriving in the absence of Le’Veon Bell, who still hasn’t signed his one-year franchise tender. The way Conner is playing — he already has three games of at least 100 yards rushing and two touchdowns — there’s no telling what Bell’s role will be whenever he bothers to show up.
In many ways, the Steelers have already moved on from Bell. A victory coming off the bye week against an opponent that’s offered little resistance through the years would provide a momentum boost as Halloween nears. Yet Cleveland believes this isn’t the Same Old Browns. Only one way to find out.
Some things to look for as Pittsburgh looks for some separation in the jumbled AFC North while the Browns try to end a 24-game road losing streak, the second-longest in NFL history.
