Category: 2023 Steelers Season Week 2

On Monday night, the Pittsburgh Steelers used two huge plays by the defense to power past the Cleveland Browns for a 26-22 win. It wasn’t a pretty win by any means but the NFL doesn’t award style points. After the game, head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about the team’s route to victory with a big play to start the game and a big play to finish it and Tomlin was blunt in his response.

“We’re not gonna apologize for winning,” Tomlin said.

On the Steelers first defensive play of the game, linebacker Alex Highsmith hauled in an interception off a deflected pass and took it in for the score. Then, on the Browns final offensive drive, Highsmith got a strip sack of Cleveland quarterback Deshaun Watson and fellow EDGE T.J. Watt scooped it up and sealed the victory.

But let’s not undersell how important the long touchdown by wide receiver George Pickens was or the two 50+ yard field goals by kicker Chris Boswell. This game might have been a mess at times and it might have come down to the wire but this victory was earned and hardly the effort of just two plays.

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On Monday night, Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick left the game against the Cleveland Browns and could not return after suffering a chest injury. You could see Fitzpatrick on the sidelines really struggling before being taken to the locker room. According to NFL reporter Tom Pelissero, Fitzpatrick was hospitalized briefly but has been released and looks to be okay.

Fitzpatrick suffered the injury in making a tackle on Browns running back Jerome Ford. Fitzpatrick chased Ford down and delayed the touchdown but at a cost.

#Steelers star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was released from the hospital Monday night after undergoing precautionary scans for what is believed to be a chest contusion, per sources. The scans were negative and there’s optimism Fitzpatrick will be fine moving forward. pic.twitter.com/4QAjMXmUAH

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 19, 2023

For the game, Fitzpatrick was strong but did find himself in the midst of some controversy early on. Fitzpatrick went in low to tackle Browns running back Nick Chubb and ended up taking out Chubb at the knees. Chubb suffered what has been characterized as a season-ending injury, opening Fitzpatrick up for criticism for the hit. There’s no way Fitzpatrick went low to injure Chubb. There is no back harder to tackle than Chubb in the NFL. Going low is the only option for any defender trying to bring him down.

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It was tense at times and it was ugly a lot of the time. But in the end, the Pittsburgh Steelers, on the back of its defense, found a way to sneak past the Cleveland Brown and pull to 1-1 with a 26-22 win. Aside from a handful of huge individual plays, this game was a mess. Here are our big takeaways from the win.

The game was a mess but a win is a win. Thanks to a pair of defensive touchdowns the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to eek out a 26-22 win over the Cleveland Browns. Pittsburgh is now 1-1 and tied for second in the AFC North. Here are our studs and duds from the game.

What a game. The Pittsburgh Steelers needed two defensive touchdowns and some exceptional special teams to overcome another questionable effort by the offense but found a way to sneak past the Cleveland Browns. Here are some of our favorite reactions to the win from social media. Keep in mind despite the win, most fans really want offensive coordinator Matt Canada fired. So rather than celebrate the win, most are just screaming for Canada to be gone.