PITTSBURGH — Cam Heyward has been on good teams before. Ones that have captured divisions. Ones that have won playoff games, though admittedly not in a while.
The longtime Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle, now well into his dotage in his 14th season, can’t quite remember having a group like the one that he plays on now.
“We have a complete team,” Heyward said.
A team that began the season riddled with question marks now finds itself steamrolling toward Christmas with everything on the table.
Russell Wilson threw for 158 yards and two touchdowns, Heyward recorded two sacks and the Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns 27-14 on Sunday even with leading receiver George Pickens watching from the sideline while missing the first game of his career due to a groin injury.
While it took Wilson and the rest of the offense time to get going with the productive if volatile Pickens out of the mix, Wilson found his footing in the second half by connecting on touchdown passes to Pat Freiermuth and Van Jefferson as the Steelers (10-3) moved two games ahead of Baltimore for the AFC North lead with four weeks to go.
Two weeks after a messy pratfall in the snow, Pittsburgh avoided being swept by the Browns for the first time since 1988 by taking advantage of the countless opportunities mistake-prone Cleveland (3-10) provided.
Jameis Winston threw two interceptions, Dustin Hopkins missed two makeable field goals when the outcome was still in doubt and a series of ill-time flags added up to the Browns reaching double-digit losses for the 18th time since the franchise returned in 1999.
“I don’t believe the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns,” Winston said. “I believe the Cleveland Browns beat the Cleveland Browns.”
While Winston avoided the pick-6s that have dogged him throughout his career — including last week in Denver — but did little after hitting Jerry Jeudy for a 35-yard touchdown in the first quarter that gave the Browns an early lead. Winston finished 24 of 41 for 211 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Nick Chubb ran for 48 yards in his return to Pittsburgh after a devastating knee injury on the same field 15 months ago forced him to miss more than a year. Yet the Steelers kept Myles Garrett relatively in check after the defensive star racked up three sacks in Cleveland’s snowy upset on Nov. 21, and Pittsburgh’s defense provided the spark that brought the offense to life.
The surge began when Winston’s screen pass intended for Chubb landed in the hands of 6-foot-4, 309-pound Steelers defensive tackle Keeanu Benton, who lugged his first career interception 11 yards. Najee Harris bulled over from 1 yard out five plays later to give the Steelers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
“That’s what good teams do this time of year,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said. “Somebody makes a play, the other side of the ball backs it up. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
Cleveland had chances to keep the Steelers within sight, but Hopkins saw a 38-yard field goal at breezy Acrisure Stadium late in the first half sail wide left, then had a 43-yarder drift wide right early in the third quarter.
“I need to find a good swing,” said Hopkins, who has an NFL-high nine misses. “The swing has been tough to find this year.”
The Steelers scored on the ensuing possession when Wilson executed a perfect run-pass option by faking the ball to Jaylen Warren, rolling right and finding Jefferson wide-open in the end zone from 10 yards out to make it 20-7.
Pittsburgh’s Elandon Roberts stuffed Jerome Ford for a 5-yard loss on fourth down to end Cleveland’s next possession, and Wilson connected with Freiermuth down the seam. The tight end stumbled into the newly painted yellow end zone to send the Browns back to Cleveland with a loss, just like they have during every regular season visit since 2004.
It also sets the stage for a daunting finishing stretch for the Steelers, who face Philadelphia, Baltimore and Kansas City over the next three weeks, with two of the games coming on short rest.
While Pittsburgh has quieted much of the noise that surrounded the team after a massive offensive overhaul in the offseason — led by the acquisition of Wilson — the Steelers understand the real test is still to come.
“Why not test us before the playoffs, get a feel?” Freiermuth said. “They’re all playoff teams we’re playing, so it’ll be great.”
Browns: CB Mike Ford Jr. was placed in the concussion protocol in the first quarter.
Steelers: DT Larry Ogunjobi (groin) left in the first half and did not return. … DB Donte Jackson (back) exited in the third quarter.
Browns: Host Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs next Sunday.
Steelers: Travel to cross-state rival Philadelphia next Sunday.
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