What to Watch for in Sunday’s N.F.L. Wild-Card Games

Browns and Steelers déjà vu? Nope.

You’re not imagining things: Cleveland did beat Pittsburgh, 24-22, last week. But the Steelers had little to play for in that matchup, and many of their starters were injured or benched, including quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.

That won’t be the case this weekend, when the third-seeded Steelers figure to be a more formidable foe Sunday against the sixth-seeded Browns (11-5). Cleveland will likely focus on limiting Roethlisberger, 38, who will be playing in his 22nd N.F.L. postseason game, but his first in three seasons. The future Hall of Famer lost his last two playoff starts, and certainly the Steelers (12-4), who began the season 11-0, have to be wondering how much longer he will be in uniform to try to win a record seventh Super Bowl championship.

The Browns weren’t too healthy, either, in the last go-round. Without six players and three assistant coaches because of positive coronavirus tests and the league’s tracing protocols, Cleveland still managed to end its streak of 17 seasons without a postseason game. The outbreak has continued this week, as head coach Kevin Stefanski, along with two more members of his staff and two players, recently tested positive for the coronavirus and will not be on the sidelines. (The special teams coach Mike Priefer will be the acting head coach.)

The Browns defense has been suspect for most of the season, giving up an average of 26.2 points a game — compared to just 19.5 points per game for the Pittsburgh defense — and their task got more arduous when defensive end Olivier Vernon ruptured his Achilles’ tendon last weekend.

Cleveland will need a strong performance from running back Nick Chubb, whose 1,067 rushing yards ranked seventh in the league and has been pivotal to the success of the play-action passing of Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield, who took a significant step forward this season with 26 touchdown passes and only eight interceptions, a career low.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/10/sports/football/nfl-wild-card-games.html