The Pittsburgh Steelers needed to stop the run against the Cleveland Browns to have a chance to win.
The Browns ran for 171 yards –– and the Steelers lost, 29-17.
Imagine that.
Steelers captain Cam Heyward had something to say about that after the game in Cleveland –– and he wasn’t happy.
Asked if the Browns’ fourth-down conversions were demoralizing for the Steelers defense, Heyward responded with some heat.
“We just lost the damn game, man,” Heyward said. “I don’t know what else is more demoralizing than that. They ran the ball. We got our ass kicked. Simple as that.”
Following the loss –– the second straight for the Steelers –– is a home showdown against the New York Jets Sunday, Oct. 2, at Acrisure Stadium.
While the team will need to brush off this latest defeat and get to work for that one, Heyward admits this last one stings. It’s a loss to a division rival in the Browns, and it’s a loss in which the defense got steamrolled on the ground.
Heyward is not a huge fan of either of those factors.
“This one’s going to be on the pot simmering for a while,” Heyward said. “We all gotta own it. I’m going to wear this, and I’m going to be better because of it.”