The Cleveland Browns have spent years chasing respectability in the AFC North, and after Thursday night they finally sit alone at the top. Deshaun Watson engineered a game-winning drive for the third consecutive week, moving Cleveland into position for Andre Szmyt's career-long 56-yard field goal with 10 seconds left as the Browns held off Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, 27-24, at Huntington Bank Field to improve to 3-1 and seize sole possession of first place in the division.
The Steelers, who fell to 2-2, erased a 21-7 deficit and tied the game on a late Rodgers touchdown and two-point conversion. But a Browns defense that sacked Rodgers five times and intercepted him twice made the difference, and Szmyt's booming kick — extending his consecutive field-goal streak to 22 — sealed a victory that reshaped the early AFC North race.
Watson Delivers Again as Cleveland's Offense Finds Just Enough
Watson completed 24 of 33 passes for 268 yards with a touchdown and an interception, finishing with a 94.0 passer rating. He added 22 yards on seven carries and absorbed two sacks — a relatively clean night by his recent standards, considering he entered averaging four sacks per start over his previous 16 games. His 290 yards of total offense kept drives alive when Cleveland needed them most.
The performance extended a striking turnaround for a quarterback who was booed at home in August and now hears "Let's go Watson" chants. "The energy, the fans, it was amazing," Watson said of the atmosphere. "They kept believing in us." After being cheered through a Week 3 comeback, Watson has now directed winning drives in three straight games — and delivered his first win over the Steelers as a Brown — a stretch that has pushed him squarely into the Comeback Player of the Year conversation.
The passing game was not flawless. Watson fumbled twice and threw an interception when a pass intended for tight end Harrison Bryant was tipped into the arms of Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. But the offense leaned on balance and timely throws rather than volume, and it delivered the decisive final march when the game hung in the balance.
Rodgers, for his part, was spectacular and costly in equal measure. He completed 22 of 40 passes for 299 yards and three touchdowns, but his two interceptions and the five sacks he absorbed told the larger story of an offensive line that could not keep Cleveland's front out of the backfield.
From a 21-7 Lead to a Final Kick: How the Night Unfolded
Both teams entered 2-1 with first place in the AFC North on the line, and Cleveland grabbed control early. Watson was nearly flawless before halftime, completing 14 of 17 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown (a 130.6 rating), and capped an 11-play, 62-yard drive with a two-yard scoring toss to tight end Harold Fannin Jr. that gave the Browns a 21-7 lead late in the second quarter.
Rodgers brought Pittsburgh back after halftime, throwing his second touchdown — a 12-yard strike to Roman Wilson — to pull within 21-16 before the Steelers eventually drew even. A Denzel Ward interception of Rodgers then set up a 28-yard Jaleel McLaughlin touchdown run that restored Cleveland's edge.
Still, the Steelers had one more answer. Rodgers orchestrated a late touchdown drive and two-point conversion to tie the game with 45 seconds remaining. That set the stage for Watson, who moved the Browns into field-goal range before Szmyt drilled a 56-yard kick with 10 seconds left — a kick he had promised the quarterback he could make.
The Defense Is the Real Story in Post-Garrett Cleveland
Cleveland won this game the way contending teams do: with a defense that kept producing even while the offense sputtered. The Browns committed 14 penalties for 88 yards and still escaped with a win because their front repeatedly swarmed Rodgers, piling up five sacks and forcing two interceptions.
That production stands out because it has come without Myles Garrett, the franchise cornerstone traded to the Los Angeles Rams in July. In his absence, Jared Verse — ranked No. 35 on the NFL's Top 100 Players list entering 2026 — has become the emotional and on-field leader of the unit. "This ain't the old Browns," Verse said afterward, a line that captured both the defensive identity and the franchise's new direction.
The numbers back the swagger. Verse recorded 58 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 27 quarterback hits and 7.5 sacks a season ago, and the pass rush has generated pressure at a rate reminiscent of its Garrett-led peak. The secondary, headlined by Ward's interception, has turned takeaways into points. For a team that entered the season facing questions about replacing a Hall of Fame-caliber pass rusher, the answer through four weeks has been emphatic.
There was also history working in Cleveland's favor. The Browns won their eighth straight Thursday night game, the longest active streak in the NFL and the fourth-longest in league history. They are 11-1 at home on Thursday Night Football and 4-0 against Pittsburgh in that setting, while the Steelers are 3-16 on the road on Thursday nights since 1970. Cleveland also snapped first-year Steelers coach Mike McCarthy's seven-game Thursday winning streak, and the all-time series — which Pittsburgh leads 79-61-1 — tilted slightly back toward the home side.
Where the AFC North Stands Now
At 3-1, the Browns sit alone in first place, a position few projected after the Garrett trade. Watson's resurgence is the headline, but the defense's ability to win without its former centerpiece is the structural reason for the surge.
The Steelers, at 2-2, leave Cleveland with familiar concerns: an offensive line that surrendered five sacks, a 42-year-old quarterback absorbing too many hits, and a turnover margin that swung the game. Rodgers remains capable of the spectacular — his three touchdown passes kept Pittsburgh alive — but the mistakes are compounding, and a visible sideline exchange with McCarthy underscored the frustration.
What Comes Next for Both Teams
Cleveland will look to extend its winning streak and hold onto the division lead, with Watson's consistency and the defense's health the two variables to watch. If the Browns can reduce the penalties and turnovers that nearly cost them Thursday, they have the profile of a legitimate division contender.
Pittsburgh faces a different test: repairing an offensive line that left its quarterback under siege and cleaning up the giveaways. McCarthy's team has the talent to compete in the North, but Thursday's loss exposed the gap between a playoff contender and a team still searching for answers.
The Bottom Line
- Deshaun Watson has led game-winning drives in three straight games, lifting Cleveland to 3-1 and first place in the AFC North.
- Andre Szmyt's career-long 56-yard field goal with 10 seconds left sealed a 27-24 win over the Steelers.
- The Browns won despite 14 penalties and two Watson fumbles, leaning on five sacks and two interceptions of Aaron Rodgers.
- Jared Verse's "This ain't the old Browns" summed up a defense thriving without Myles Garrett.
- Rodgers threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns but was picked off twice and sacked five times as Pittsburgh fell to 2-2.
- Cleveland extended the NFL's longest active Thursday Night Football winning streak to eight games.
