The Steelers had a chance to make Week 18 meaningless by beating the Browns in Cleveland on Sunday, but they couldn’t make that happen.
Whether that was because they were too focused on keeping Myles Garrett from breaking the single-season sack record, a long-standing issue when it comes to beating bad teams or something else, the 13-6 loss to the Browns means they will need to beat the Ravens for the second time this season in order to win the AFC North.
The Steelers know they won’t have wide receiver DK Metcalf for that game as he finishes serving a two-game suspension while tight end Darnell Washington broke his arm on Sunday. Wide receiver Calvin Austin missed the game with a hamstring injury to compound the issues contributing to a dismal offensive performance, but the prospect of a shorthanded offense didn’t give quarterback Aaron Rodgers reason for doubt that his team will come through against Baltimore.
“I have full confidence we’ll go home and win next week. . .. We’ve done it all season,” Rodgers said in his postgame press conference. “We’ve handled adversity well. When we had to play our best ball we did, other than today.”
The Steelers opened the season 4-1, dipped to 6-6 and then won three straight before Sunday’s loss, so it has been a streaky first season for Rodgers in Pittsburgh. The hope will be that the Browns game is an exception to that pattern or next Sunday night could turn out to be the final time we see Rodgers in an NFL uniform.
Steelers Clips
The Steelers had the AFC North in their grasp. And they blew their chance, losing to the previously 3-12 Browns.
It’s not the first time the Steelers have fallen flat in recent years against a bad team.
Via Doug Clawson of CBS Sports, the Steelers are winless in their last five games against teams that entered the contest eight or more games below .500. That ties the longest streak in NFL history.
The Steelers lost to the 2-10-1 Bengals in 2020 (Pittsburgh entered the game 11-2), they tied the 0-8 Lions in 2021 (the Steelers entered the game 5-3), they lost to the 2-10 Cardinals in 2023 (Pittsburgh was 7-4), they lost to the 2-10 Patriots the very next week in 2023 (7-5), and they lost on Sunday to the 3-12 Browns (9-6).
While many players have changed since 2020, there are some constants, both on the roster and the coaching staff (starting with, obviously, head coach Mike Tomlin). The situation speaks to the habit of overlooking a subpar foe, losing just enough focus to not beat them.
Fortunately for the Steelers, they won’t be facing any more teams with bad records, either next week or in the postseason, if they can beat the 8-8 Ravens and qualify for the playoffs. It the Steelers lose to Baltimore, the Steelers can blame themselves for another failure to handle a team with a very bad record.
The 2025 regular season concludes next weekend. And it all ends with Game No. 272.
The NFL announced following Sunday night’s 42-38 thriller between the 49ers and Bears that Week 18 will conclude with the Baltimore Ravens visiting the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The winner becomes the AFC North champion. The loser goes home.
These two franchises have never met in the last week of the season in a winner-take-all scenario. This year, they will.
The contest oozes with storylines. Mike Tomlin has coached the Steelers for 19 years. John Harbaugh is finishing his 18th with the Ravens. Will the coach of the losing team move on, voluntarily or otherwise?
It also could be the final game in the first-ballot Hall of Fame career of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Likewise, it could be the last game for Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson in Baltimore, depending on the developments to come in the offseason.
Jackson, as reported during NBC’s Football Night in America, is currently believed to be a shade under 50-50 to play with a back contusion suffered last Sunday night against the Patriots. Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt is viewed as a long shot, due to his ongoing recovery from surgery to repair a partially collapsed lung.
It’s a playoff play-in game. With potentially very high stakes for both teams, both coaches, both quarterbacks. And it’s a perfect way to end the 2025 regular season.
The Steelers and the Ravens will meet next weekend, with the AFC North title on the line. For the home team, the question is whether linebacker T.J. Watt will be ready to go.
He had surgery on December 12 to repair a partially collapsed lung. Watt has missed the last three games.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Watt is considered a “long shot” to play in Week 18. Added the source, “Never say never but not an ideal timeline to be fully cleared.”
Via Tracy Wolfson of CBS, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Watt won’t play until he has a week of practice as a full participant. Tomlin added that they’re treating Watt’s condition differently than an injury situation.
As they should. Watt didn’t suffer an injury; he was the victim of apparent malpractice, from whoever performed a defective dry-needle procedure that punctured Watt’s lung.
Browns defensive end Myles Garrett alleged earlier this season that the Steelers are coached to hold him rather than give up a sack to him. Multiple Steelers players denied it last week before Sunday’s game.
The Steelers were not called for a holding penalty, and Garrett didn’t get a sack to set the NFL’s single-season sack record.
After the Browns’ 13-6 win over the Steelers, though, Garrett said what everyone saw: The Steelers’ obsession with Garrett getting the record came at the expense of winning the game.
The Steelers had 291 total yards, with Aaron Rodgers throwing for only 168, his fifth-lowest total this season. He averaged only 3.5 air yards on his 21 completions and was 4-of-15 on passes thrown more than 5 air yards downfield, per ESPN, though he did play without wideouts DK Metcalf and Calvin Austin. Rodgers’ average time to throw was 2.39 seconds, his fourth quickest in a game this season.
The Steelers lost, but they did a good job protecting T.J. Watt’s record.
“I mean, to an extent [the Steelers had the record on their mind]. I feel like they were more worried about keeping me away from Aaron than getting the win, and I think that’s what came back to bite him,” Garrett said, via Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN. “So, they’ll have to fight it out with Baltimore next week. But I’m just proud of the guys for fighting and getting this one. That’s the main thing, and I’m always going to keep it that.”
Garrett has 22 sacks, a half-sack from the record of 22.5 shared by Watt and Hall of Famer Michael Strahan. He ended Sunday’s game with a tackle, a quarterback hit and three quarterback pressures.
The Steelers used double teams and chips to keep Garrett from sacking Rodgers.
“We didn’t do anything against Myles that we don’t normally do against Myles,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “The sack records are irrelevant. We got to minimize him if we want to engineer victory. We did the same thing last time we played him. I didn’t think he had any sacks in that game either. And so, we didn’t take a different approach because of the gravity of the record. It’s just standard business when you’re playing these guys and him.”
The Browns close out the season against the Bengals in Garrett’s final chance for the record, while the Steelers will play the Ravens for the AFC North title in a win-or-go-home game. The Steelers would have clinched the division with a win over the Browns.
Garrett remains confident he will end up with the record, though it won’t come at home.
“Absolutely. Why shouldn’t I be?” he said. “Four more quarters, 60 more minutes. However you want to draw it up, it’ll get done.”
The Steelers saw tight end Darnell Washington leave Sunday’s loss to the Browns with an injury that seems likely to keep him out of their Week 18 bid to win the AFC North.
Head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters in his postgame press conference that Washington broke his arm. Tomlin said that there is currently no timetable for his return, but the nature of the injury suggests he’ll miss their game against the Ravens.
The Steelers need to win or tie that game to win the division and advance to the playoffs.
Washington had two catches for 15 yards in Sunday’s 13-6 loss to the Browns.
Myles Garrett did not get it done on Sunday.
With a shot to break the single-season record, Garrett did not record a sack in the Browns’ victory over the Steelers on Sunday, keeping him at 22.0 for the 2025 season.
It was the first time since Cleveland’s Week 6 loss to Pittsburgh that Garrett did not record at least a half-sack in a game.
Garrett came close to bringing down quarterback Aaron Rodgers a few times, but the only sacks recorded were by safety Grant Delpit and defensive end Alex Wright.
The Steelers largely stayed away from Garrett, with the defensive end recording one total tackle and one QB hit.
Garret will have one last shot to break the record when the Browns play the Bengals in Week 18. Garrett’s registered 15.0 career sacks against the Bengals — the most he has against one opponent.
The Ravens and Steelers will play for the AFC North next week.
In a big upset, Cleveland played spoiler and beat Pittsburgh 13-6 to keep Baltimore alive for the division title.
The Browns led throughout the contest, taking a 10-0 lead in the first quarter off of a 50-yard field goal by Andre Szmyt and a 28-yard touchdown pass from Shedeur Sanders to tight end Harold Fannin.
Pittsburgh scored a pair of field goals in the second quarter, with Chris Boswell hitting from 44 and 40 yards.
But after that, there was no scoring to speak of until late in the fourth quarter. The Steelers went for it on fourth-and-10 from their own 20-yard line, but Aaron Rodgers’ pass was tipped at the line by Shelby Harris and was incomplete for a turnover on downs.
The Browns made the Steelers burn all three of their timeouts before Szmyt hit a 33-yard field goal to put Cleveland up by seven.
From there, it didn’t take Pittsburgh long to get down the field, with Rodgers completing passes to Scotty Miller, Pat Freiermuth, and Adam Thielen to get the club down to Cleveland’s 7-yard line with 29 seconds on the clock
But after that, Rodgers threw three straight incompletions to Marquez Valdes-Scantling on the right side, with the final one ending the contest.
Rodgers finished the game 21-of-39 for 168 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
The Steelers finished with 291 total yards, with the club tallying 15 first downs while going 3-of-15 on third down.
Pittsburgh didn’t score a touchdown, but with largely quick passing, the club did prevent Myles Garrett from breaking the single-season sack record. Garrett finished a game without a sack for the first time since Week 6, which was also against the Steelers.
On the other side, Shedeur Sanders had a solid first half but didn’t do much in the second. He finished 17-of-23 for 186 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Jerry Jeudy caught five passes for 54 yards.
With the win, the Browns are now 4-12 and will finish the season on the road against division-rival Cincinnati.
The Steelers fell to 9-7 and will have another shot to clinch the AFC North next week with a game against the Ravens in Pittsburgh that is likely destined for prime time.
The Ravens are likely pleased with what’s transpired in the first half of Sunday’s matchup on the shores of Lake Erie.
The Browns lead the Steelers 10-6 at halftime in a game that will decide the AFC North if Pittsburgh wins.
Cleveland got out to a 10-0 start with a 50-yard field goal by Andre Szmyt and a 28-yard touchdown pass by Shedeur Sanders. But the club could not get anything going in the second period, despite finishing the half with 210 total yards and averaging 7.0 yards per play.
Pittsburgh got a pair of field goals from Chris Boswell in the second quarter, with the veteran kicker nailing a 44-yard attempt early in the period and a 40-yard attempt to close the half.
It was mostly an ugly first 30 minutes for the Pittsburgh offense, with Aaron Rodgers finishing the first two quarters 8-of-17 for 72 yards. With DK Metcalf out due to a suspension, Pat Freiermuth leads with 23 yards receiving.
On the verge of breaking the single-season sack record, Myles Garrett has not had many opportunities to get a good rush on Rodgers with the Steelers QB getting rid of the ball quickly in known-passing situations.
On the other side, Sanders is 12-of-17 passing for 164 yards with a touchdown and an interception. The pick was tipped before being intercepted, with Sanders facing heavy pressure on the throw. He nearly threw a pick-six later in the first half, but Nick Herbig dropped the ball.
Injury-wise, Browns tight end Harold Fannin is questionable to return with a groin injury. Cleveland linebacker Carson Schwesinger has been dealing with multiple ailments in the first half, but has continued to play.
Steelers tight end Darnell Washington is questionable to return with a forearm injury.
If the Steelers can come back and win in the second half, they will clinch the AFC North. If the Browns hang on to win, the division will come down to next week’s matchup between Pittsburgh and Baltimore.
The Steelers will receive the second-half kickoff.
So far, the Browns are keeping the AFC North race alive.
Shedeur Sanders connected with fellow rookie Harold Fannin Jr. for a 28-yard touchdown pass, giving Cleveland a 10-0 lead with 5:11 left in the first quarter.
Sanders had two chunk passes on the drive, first hitting Cedric Tillman on the left side for a 42-yard gain to put Cleveland in Pittsburgh territory.
A couple of plays after Trayveon Williams converted third-and-5 with a 9-yard run, Sanders floated one up for Fannin who caught it and rolled into the end zone for a 28-yard touchdown.
But Fannin apparently aggravated the groin injury he suffered during the week on the catch. He was able to get up and walk to the sideline under his own power. Multiple reporters on the scene note Fannin was examined in the tent but has been trying to jog on the sideline.
Browns kicker Andre Szmyt had opened the scoring with a 50-yard field goal to cap the Browns’ opening possession with points.
