The Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers are ready for some Thursday Night Football. The 3-6 Cleveland Browns will host the 5-4 Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers are currently riding a four game winning streak. They defeated the Los Angeles Rams last week 17-12 at home. Meanwhile the Browns are coming off a last minute win against the Buffalo Bills, 19-16.
For the Browns, their season remains on the line as they have to keep winning games from here on out. Here are three keys to a Browns victory:
HUNT AND CHUBB: It seems so simple sometimes. When Hunt was on the field with Chubb. There was an immediate impact. Hunt showed he can do it all with blocking, run, and make critical catches out of the slot or backfield. It didn’t impact Nick Chubb’s numbers on the ground either. Sure, you don’t want to take his numbers away but it’s nice to have a back-up that can keep Chubb fresh throughout the game.
FREDDIE KITCHENS: Freddie has been on the hot seat the past few weeks. A win over the Bills helped that for a week. Can he make it two in a row? Kitchens has shown he is clearly a rookie head coach. Maybe he is growing like this young. Can he make sure his guys keep the penalties down? Not make a bad challenge? Get the plays in on time? Keep the right players in at the right times? Last week, most would argue that the Browns despite Freddie. That might be true but it does seem like Freddie is starting to figure some things out.
Take away Conner or JuJu: The Steelers two studs on offense are clearly wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner. For the Browns the simple equation is just take one of those away. For quarterback Mason Rudolph to find different options when his two games are struggling during the game.
The Browns and Steelers kick off at 8:20 p.m. on FOX. Browns are 3-point favorites.