Breaking down the good, the bad, and the UGLY in the Steelers loss to the Cleveland Browns
The Good, Bad, and Ugly column is a breakdown of several segments of each game into each of a grading category of “good”, “bad”, or “ugly”. To get to the nitty gritty, Joe Kuzma dissects three moments from each game which could be best classified as each of those labels.
Good – T.J. Watt‘s lone sack
Browns Ball: 3rd Quarter 9:44 – 1st-and-10 PIT 49
This could’ve turned out much worse for the Steelers, who were already down 14-0 and gave the ball away on their first possession of the second half on a Mason Rudolph interception.
However, the Steelers defense rose to the occassion once again. The Browns had the ball at midfield, but T.J. Watt stormed through and finally got to Cleveland QB Baker Mayfield, the only time Pittsburgh’s defense would do so all game.
This set the Browns back to 2nd-and-14, and they would punt two plays later, leading to the long series where the Steelers would see Diontae Johnson knocked out of the game and several penalties aid them in scoring their only points on the evening.
Bad – Damarious Randall‘s hit on Diontae Johnson
Steelers Ball: 3rd Quarter 8:11 – 1st-and-10 PIT 13
Following the above mentioend series, the very first play by the Steelers offense was the one where Diontae Johnson gets massacred by Browns S Damarious Randall.
Needless to say, hits like this are unacceptable in today’s version of football and Randall is likely seeking a suspension and/or fine for the play, which could’ve been avoided entirely. (Johnson also left the field on a cart, bleeding from his ear.)
https://twitter.com/247KevinBoilard/status/1195181938090352641
Ugly – Myles Garrett strikes Mason Rudolph with a helmet
Steelers Ball: 4th Quarter 00:8 – 3rd-and-29 PIT 17
There is literally no place in any sport for this type of behavior.
For those who believe Mason Rudolph instigated anything here, at least physically, I hope you take a good look at the clip below, because I’m struggling to find what would justify a defensive player, who already got in a late lick and is laying on top of his opponent, to then rip the quarterback’s helmet off and proceed to use it as a weapon against said quarterback.
This would otherwise be known as assault if it happened in a bar or night club. Keep that in mind as you watch the clip as it’s by far the ugliest thing I’ve seen in recent memory.
https://twitter.com/MySportsUpdate/status/1195201548764229632?s=19
