Steelers (

19.75) at
Browns (

15.75)

Game Overview ::

By papy324 >>

• DK Metcalf punched a fan during the Week 16 win over the Lions and has been suspended without pay for the rest of the regular season.
• Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell both posted big games against the Lions, but they are splitting snaps nearly down the middle. 
• The Steelers use three tight ends and the split in playing time limits all their value. 
• Quinshon Judkins is out with an ugly leg injury. If Dylan Sampson also sits, there isn’t much behind him on the depth chart.
• Shedeur Sanders has two more games to make his case for next season. So far, he hasn’t looked pro ready. 
• Harold Fannin is the only viable pass catcher from either side with Metcalf missing the game. 
• Both defenses are in play.

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How PITTSBURGH Will Try To Win ::

The 9-6 Steelers come into Week 17 fresh off an upset victory in Detroit. The Steelers ran all over the Lions and managed to totally neutralize Detroit’s typically powerful running game. The Lions mustered a pitiful 15 yards on the ground, that, without checking, must be their lowest team rushing total of the season. The Steelers turned 27 total rushes into 230 team rushing yards, averaging 8.5 YPC as a team. Pittsburgh bullied Detroit in a game that essentially ended their season. It also gave the Steelers a stranglehold on the AFC North, needing to win only this game to secure the division, albeit without Metcalf.

The Steelers have been playing at a moderate pace (16^th in seconds per play) and are balanced (13^th in PROE). This year’s Steelers have been a different version of the typical Arthur Smith offense. Aaron Rodgers’ influence is clear. In the past Smith has run at extreme rates, even while losing, eventually being known for running the clock out on himself. This year, the Steelers are using Smith’s run-game concepts, which have always been sound, but they are also making teams respect their ability to attack through the air. The Browns have been tough against the run (No. 2 in DVOA), and solid (10^th in DVOA) against the pass. The Browns defense spent much of the season dominating offenses, but they have taken a step back the past month with the injury to Denzel Ward. 

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The Browns are weaker against the pass, but the Steelers are without Metcalf and have no WR depth. With Metcalf out, the Steelers will likely respond with some version of a three-TE offense. That will probably lead to all of Darnell Washington, Pat Freiermuth, and Jonnu Smith seeing over 50% of the snaps. Smith has been used as a “joker,” Freiermuth as a hybrid WR/TE and Washington as the in-line TE. That’ll be their most likely deployment, in a game where the Steelers will certainly also test the Browns’ recently leaky run defense.  

HOW CLEVELAND WILL TRY TO WIN ::