Thursday Night Football against the Browns is staring the Pittsburgh Steelers right in the face, and with Joey Porter Jr. ruled out and Jalen Ramsey questionable, their secondary is walking into a minefield against Cleveland’s secret weapon, Harold Fannin Jr. The Steelers are coming off a 30-27 Week 3 win against the Bengals, moving them to 2-1, but the 2-1 Browns, fresh off a 21-18 win over Carolina, are no pushover, especially at home. Cleveland has found ways to win even with inconsistent production, and Pittsburgh needs to be dialed in on a short week to keep their own offense rolling.
Fannin’s Firepower and the Secondary Scramble
Look, Fannin Jr. isn’t just a guy. He’s become one of Cleveland’s most reliable offensive weapons, no joke. Last week against Carolina, he pulled in seven passes for 51 yards and TWO touchdowns. Over their last two games, this tight end has seen 15 targets. Think about that for a second. With Porter Jr. out completely and Ramsey a real question mark for Thursday night, the Steelers’ secondary is going to be tested big time. Losing track of Fannin, especially when Cleveland gets near the goal line, just cannot happen. The Steelers need to make sure if Fannin catches the ball, those completions are short and they shut down anything happening after the catch. Anything less and he’s gonna torch ’em.
Warren’s Spark and Rodgers’ Balanced Attack
On the flip side, the Steelers’ offense needs to keep that spark Jaylen Warren brought last week. Rico Dowdle is sidelined again, so Warren is about to get another huge opportunity, and he earned it. Against Cincinnati, he exploded for 127 rushing yards and added 49 receiving yards. The Browns have actually given up some success on the ground this season, so Pittsburgh absolutely has a chance to establish the run early. Warren’s ability to rip off plays as both a runner and a receiver also gives Aaron Rodgers a perfect outlet when the Browns bring the heat. Rodgers, by the way, had one of his better games of the season against Cincinnati, throwing for 292 yards and three scores as the offense put up 411 total yards. Warren’s ground game was critical there, stopping the Bengals from just zeroing in on the pass. Pittsburgh needs that same kind of balance in Cleveland. We don’t need Rodgers airing it out 40-plus times; we need Warren moving the chains.
Make the Browns Work For It, Seriously
Here’s the thing about Cleveland’s offense: they haven’t exactly been lighting up the scoreboard in their two-game winning streak. They put up 23 against the Buccaneers in Week 2 and then 21 against Carolina. Deshaun Watson only threw for 144 yards against Carolina, but yeah, two of those went for touchdowns to Fannin. Pittsburgh doesn’t need to totally shut down Watson, but they cannot give him easy plays. Not with those secondary injuries. The Steelers absolutely have to force Cleveland to grind out long drives. No broken plays turning into chunk gains. Make them earn every single yard, every single point, from start to finish. This is huge for the Steelers to keep their momentum and head into the rest of the season strong.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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