It was the Pittsburgh Steelers’ worst nightmare, losing to the Cleveland Browns this past Sunday.

Not just because the Browns are the AFC North’s perennial cellar dwellers or were once Pittsburgh’s biggest rival — although geographically, they still are — or that it dropped the Steelers’ division record to 1-2 or put a major crimp in its chance to win the division.

No, the biggest reason is because it might set off a chain of events that could hinder the team for the rest of the season.

The loss most likely will force quarterback Ben Roethlisberger back into the starting lineup, although he won’t be 100 percent and could do more damage than good.

The Steelers are 0-2 in Roethlisberger’s absence, brought on thanks to a rare rib injury as well as sprained shoulder in the team’s victory against the Kansas City Chiefs. That win moved the team to 6-3 and looking good for a playoff spot and still battling for the division lead.

The Steelers — at that time one game behind Baltimore for the AFC North lead, but still two games up on the rest of the wild-card field — saw backup Byron Leftwich ineffective in the Steelers’ 13-10 loss, in which Leftwich injured several ribs and is out indefinitely.

Sadly, a win would have given Pittsburgh the upper hand with identical records, along with the Steelers’ early head-to-head advantage.

Enter third-stringer Charlie Batch, who was 5-2 as a starter filling in for Roethlisberger. Batch, less than two weeks before his 38th birthday, needed to guide the Steelers to a win against the Browns — if anything to give the team a lift and hold off other potential wild-card teams.

Instead, the offense looked putrid, suffering eight turnovers, including three second-half interceptions by Batch in the Steelers’ 20-14 loss.

Now at 6-5, the Steelers are tied with the Cincinnati Bengals — although Pittsburgh currently holds the tiebreaker for the head-to-head win in October — while the Ravens hold a three-game lead entering Sunday’s showdown at Baltimore, where the Ravens have won 16 straight dating back to 2010.

A triumph against the Browns could have afforded the Steelers a chance to put in a more comfortable Batch against the Ravens and allow Roethlisberger another week to heal.

Instead, this offense seems to go as Ben goes, so the Steelers will look to his quicker reads and delivery against a hard-charging Ravens defense. That may mean a few shots directed at Roethlisberger, not what you’d want from someone a couple of weeks removed from a serious injury which could have severed Roethlisberger’s aorta — I don’t know much about medicine, but my guess is you need one of those.

That loss to the Browns may be more disappointing than, say, the Oakland Raiders and Tennessee Titans. A win against Cleveland would have bought the Steelers more time to let Roethlisberger heal.

Now, they may place him in a precarious situation where he could get injured again. Do you think Baltimore will call off the dogs and cut Roethlisberger a break? Not likely.

Roethlisberger still needs to sit at least another week. All things considered, the Steelers still have a wild-card spot today. A healthier Roethlisberger for the final four games is better than trying to sneak him in a game early.

Sam Tallarico is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.