PITTSBURGH (AP) — No fourth-quarter heroics from Deshaun Watson this time. No first, second, or third-quarter heroics, either.
Not on a day the Cleveland Browns quarterback and the rest of his team received an up-close look at the gap between where they are and where they're trying to go.
The Browns arrived in Pittsburgh on Sunday hoping to send a message. They did, just not the one they wanted. For all the promise they've shown during the opening two months of the season, they have plenty of shortcomings, too.
Those were evident in a 27-6 loss to the rival Steelers that didn't even feel that close.
A pair of early fumbles showcased some jitters. The eight sacks Watson absorbed — which he took most of the blame for — boosted his total to an NFL-high 33. The swagger defensive end Jared Verse hoped to bring was replaced by compliance on a day the Steelers rushed for 200 yards.
“You can't just fall on just one loss,” Watson said. “Of course, this was a big one. This was an opportunity for us to be able to really take control of that. But it didn't go our way.”
No, it didn't.
For all of Cleveland's promising results in September and October, when each of its five victories came courtesy of fourth-quarter drives orchestrated by Watson — including a 27-24 thriller over Pittsburgh on Oct. 1 — November opened with a record-tying 23rd straight regular-season defeat at Acrisure Stadium.
If the Browns were trying to shed the weight of history, it didn't go particularly well. At times, their sloppy play made it seem they were burdened by it.
As opponents go, this wasn't erratic Tampa Bay, up-and-down Carolina, woeful Tennessee, the Lamar Jackson-less Ravens or the Steelers at home on a short week.
This was in Pittsburgh, where the Browns haven't won during the regular season since 2003, a year before rookie wide receiver KC Concepcion was born.
Cleveland tried to set the tone early, winning the toss and taking the ball. What happened next served as a hint of what was to come. Watson took a hit to the head from Steelers safety Jaquan Brisker and headed to the medical tent to be evaluated for a concussion.
Shedeur Sanders came on for a handful of snaps that went nowhere, and the possession ended when Harold Fannin Jr. fumbled. Watson returned on the next series, only to have it end with another fumble.
It took the Steelers five plays to go 45 yards, four of them runs, to take the lead. Another three-and-out led to a Pittsburgh field goal.
“Do we have a young team? Of course we have a young team,” first-year Browns coach Todd Monken said. “Does that exonerate ourselves from two turnovers the first two drives and keeping our poise and playing at a high level? No, of course not.”
Verse, who called the Steelers out for what he felt was dirty play in their first meeting, didn't back away from his words even after he was limited to just an assisted tackle and was body-slammed into the ground by Steelers guard Mason McCormick.
“I don’t know who the hell that team was that walked out there, that presented themselves,” Verse said. “We didn’t do enough across the board from the first quarter to the last quarter.”
The schedule isn't particularly daunting ahead of Cleveland's bye later this month. The Browns play at New Orleans next week, then host underachieving Houston. Cleveland insists the good vibes it built since the start of training camp remain intact.
“We're going to fight like hell to get better,” Monken said. “That's all you can do.”
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