A chaotic NFL season has all come down to this.
With Week 17 approaching, numerous NFL teams will be battling for their playoff lives in the upcoming regular season finale.
One of those AFC teams vying for a playoff berth are the Cleveland Browns, which on the surface, is a bit of a surprise considering their 17-year playoff drought and history of letdowns. On the contrary though, the fact that the franchise hasn’t clinched a playoff berth by now is a bit of a surprise.
The Browns could’ve done just that this past Sunday with a Steelers win over the Colts and a victory over the lowly Jets, but as Pittsburgh managed to erase a 17-point deficit and win the AFC North crown, Cleveland wasn’t able to make a comeback of its own as the Jets won their second straight game, 23-16.
Like Pittsburgh’s loss to the Bengals and the Rams’ defeat in the hands of the Jets last week, It’s no doubt an inexplicable loss for the Browns, who were missing four of their top wide receivers as well as two starting offensive linemen and a couple of linebackers.
It’s a defeat that fans, analysts, etc. will come back to and tear apart even more if the team doesn’t make this year’s playoffs. The game also not being moved to a few days later like the Steelers-Ravens game (and the Titans) will also be the subject of more ridicule.
This past weekend was a nightmare scenario for the Browns, and everything that could’ve gone wrong on Sunday did. The usually strong run game gained 45 yards on just 18 carries, while the offense passed the ball 53 times with its top four receivers out. Quarterback Baker Mayfield also fumbled three times and lost two of them, one on a quarterback sneak on 4th-and-1 at the end of the game.
The loss is certainly painful not just for the players, but also the coaching staff led by first-year head coach Kevin Stefanski, which has been able to put together solid game plans throughout the entire season. The defeat also puts a stain on Stefanski’s chances to win Coach of the Year, especially if the franchise misses the playoffs.
But luckily for the organization, Cleveland still controls its own destiny and with a win in this Sunday’s finale in Cleveland against the Steelers, the Browns will clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2002.
The question is not only how the Browns play with their backs against the wall, but also how the Steelers decide to approach Sunday’s game with the AFC North title locked up. They will have either the No. 2 or No. 3 seed in the playoffs.
Do they rest their starters ahead of the wild card playoff round next week? Do they play them the entire game so they don’t lose their momentum and rhythm from the Colts win? Maybe the starters play for one half? There are different directions Pittsburgh can take in this situation. Coming from a die-hard Packers family, I remember the Bears were in a similar situation as the Steelers during the 2010 season with the Packers needing a win to secure the NFC’s final playoff spot and Chicago already winning the NFC North crown and having a first round bye in the playoffs.
The Bears played their starters, the Packers edged them to make the playoffs and Green Bay would defeat Chicago again in the NFC Championship on its way to a Super Bowl win over the Steelers.
I’m in no way saying the same outcome and situation will take place for the Steelers and Browns in Week 17 and postseason, but that’s just to give you an idea of how a similar situation played out.
The last time the Steelers and Browns met, Pittsburgh cruised to a 38-7 win at Heinz Field. Regardless of what Pittsburgh decides to do regarding its starters, it’s up to the Browns to take care of business or else they miss out on the postseason despite having 10 wins like they did so in 2007.
If the Browns lose to Pittsburgh, then they would need the 1-14 Jaguars, who clinched the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, to beat the Colts. Let’s face it, the odds of the Colts losing to the Jaguars are extremely low, but not impossible — just ask the 2003 Minnesota Vikings.
That year’s Vikings team started out 6-0, then fell to 9-6 and needed to beat the 3-12 Arizona Cardinals to clinch the NFC North. Long story short, a young Josh McCown found Nate Poole for a game-winning touchdown pass as time expired, sending the Packers to the playoffs with the NFC North title instead.
Poole was then invited to the Packers’ wild card playoff game against the Seahawks where he got the key to the city.
Another scenario of the Browns getting in would be a Titans loss (to the Texans) along with a Dolphins win or tie (against Buffalo) and a Ravens win or tie (against the Bengals).
As is the case with anything in sports and a big reason why I think this year’s playoffs can provide some entertaining, down to the wire games, any team can beat anyone on any given day. The Browns going from that high percentage of making the postseason down to a real chance that they may not and mediocre teams like the Bengals and Jets finding ways to pull off upset wins are examples of that.
That is exactly what makes the NCAA Tournament so special every year and why maybe an expanded College Football Playoff probably would be better than the current four-team format. Anyways, let’s not get too off topic.
Disappointment and letdowns have been a part of the Browns history for quite some time. It goes back to games like Red Right 88, The Drive, The Fumble, etc.
Will the Browns rise above all that and overcome their stereotype as choke artists and potentially usher in a new winning era in Cleveland or will they be the same old Browns?
We’ll find out this Sunday.
(Patrick Kotnik, a sportswriter at the Bradford Era, can be reached at pkotnik@bradfordera.com.)
