COIN TOSS: Browns win the toss and elect to defer. Steelers get the ball first.
8:17 p.m. – What Went Wrong: On the first play of the game, Maurkice Pouncey's shotgun snap sailed over Ben Roethlisberger's head and rolled inside the Pittsburgh 5-yard line. James Conner was unable to secure the fumble, and after it rolled into the end zone, safety Karl Joseph recovered in the end zone for a touchdown. The Browns led, 7-0, with 14:46 left in the first quarter.
8:24 p.m. – What Went Wrong: Following the kickoff after the Steelers gifted the Browns a touchdown, Ben Roethlisberger threw an interception that returned the ball to Cleveland at the Pittsburgh 46-yard line. After gaining two first downs, Roethlisberger was pressured and overthrew Benny Snell, and the ball was intercepted by M.J. Stewart.
8:28 p.m. – What Went Wrong: What was bad got even worse. Three plays after Ben Roethlisberger's interception – on a third-and-4 from the Steelers 40-yard line, Mike Hilton lost Jarvis Landry in coverage, and then after Landry caught a short pass, Terrell Edmunds took a bad angle to make a tackle, then Hilton caught up but missed a tackle, and it was a 40-yard touchdown that upped the Browns lead to 14-0 with 9:46 left in the first quarter.
8:35 p.m. – What Went Wrong: Another possession for the Steelers, and another disaster, although this one was of the mini-variety when compared to the first two. After two James Conner runs gained 9 yards, the Steelers tried to turn to fullback Derek Watt on third-and-short. But Cleveland's Larry Ogunjobi first stood up Maurkice Pouncey then drove him into the backfield where he stopped Watt's forward progress and stuffed it for no gain. After the punt, the Browns started at their 35-yard line.
8:42 p.m. – What Went Wrong: Another possession for the Browns, and it was another touchdown to extend their lead to 21-0 with 4:40 left in the first quarter. After Jordan Berry's punt, Nick Chubb carried on the first two plays and gained 37 yards. Baker Mayfield converted a third-and-6 with a 12-yard pass to Rashard Higgins, and then on first-and-10 from the 11-yard line, Kareem Hunt scored on an 11-yard run in which he ran over Robert Spillane inside the 5-yard line.
8:50 p.m. – What Went Wrong: More of the same. Ben Roethlisberger overthrew another receiver and it ended up as another interception four plays into the Steelers possession that followed Kareem Hunt's first rushing touchdown. It was Hunt's first, and his second would come three plays after Sheldrick Redwine returned Roethlisberger's second interception 30 yards to the Pittsburgh 15-yard line. Hunt's second touchdown came on an 8-yard run, and it was 28-0.
9:17 p.m. – What Went Wrong: It was a third interception by Ben Roethlisberger in the game's first quarter-and-a-half that stopped a Steelers drive before it had a chance to get started. It was a third-and-2, and Roethlisberger's pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage by Vincent Taylor, and defensive end Porter Gustin made a diving interception to give the Browns the ball at their 47-yard line.
9:36 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers got on the scoreboard late in the second quarter thanks to a 13-play, 89-yard drive that was capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by James Conner. James Washington caught passes on three straight plays for 54 yards. On fourth-and-1 from the 2-yard line, Ben Roethlisberger did a nice job of fielding a low shotgun snap to get the ball to Conner, who got the first down with a nice second effort.
9:46 p.m. – What Went Wrong: One step forward, two steps back. The Browns answered the Steelers touchdown drive with one of their own, and it covered 64 yards in nine plays, with Baker Mayfield capping it off with a 7-yard pass to a wide open Austin Hooper. That made it 35-7.
9:53 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers crept a little closer before halftime, but even a 49-yard field goal by Chris Boswell that narrowed the deficit to 35-10 inspired a lot of confidence. Ben Roethlisberger completed passes of 11 yards to Diontae Johnson and 15 yards to Chase Claypool to get it close enough for Boswell to do his thing. The Browns led, 35-10, at halftime.
HALFTIME: Browns 35, Steelers 10
10:13 p.m. – What Went Right: The Browns received the second half kickoff, and after gaining a couple of first downs, the Steelers defense stiffened and forced a punt. The Steelers took over at their 16-yard line with 11 minutes remaining in the third quarter.
10:22 p.m. – What Went Right: Ben Roethlisberger completed eight straight passes, the last a 17-yarder to Eric Ebron in the end zone, to cap an 84-yard touchdown drive that closed the gap to 35-17 with 7:22 left in the third quarter. The 2-point conversion pass for James Conner was incomplete.
10:39 p.m. – What Went Right: It was a 68-yard drive in 12 plays and was capped by a 5-yard touchdown pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster that cut the Steelers' deficit to 35-23 with 2:57 remaining in the third quarter. Ben Roethlisberger converted a third-and-9 with a 15-yard pass to Diontae Johnson, and then a third-and-10 with a 15-yard completion to Smith-Schuster.
10:56 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Steelers needed a stop, and instead the Browns drove 80 yards in six plays to extend their lead to 42-23 with 12:32 remaining in the fourth quarter. The scoring play came on a quick pass to Nick Chubb that he turned into a 40-yard touchdown. A key play in the drive was a 17-yard pass from Baker Mayfield to Jarvis Landry that converted a third-and-2.
11:06 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers were trading touchdowns with the Browns, and a 29-yard completion to Chase Claypool made it 42-29 after another failed 2-point conversion. On the final three plays of the drive, Ben Roethlisberger was 3-for-3 for 69 yards and the touchdown. There was 11:08 remaining in the fourth quarter.
11:17 p.m. – What Went Wrong: Each time the Steelers really needed their defense to come through with a stop, the Browns drive and score more points to add to their lead. This time it was a 13-play, 59-yard drive that ended with a 24-yard field goal by Cody Parkey that made it 45-29 with 4:28 remaining in the fourth quarter. Key plays were a 17-yard completion to Jarvis Landry and an 8-yard pass to Austin Hooper that converted a third-and-3.
11:23 p.m. – What Went Wrong: It didn't officially end the game, but for all intents and purposes Ben Roethlisberger's fourth interception – by Sione Takitaki on a pass intended for Eric Ebron – was the final nail in the coffin. Takitaki returned the ball to the Steelers 25-yard line. Cody Parkey ended the possession with a 37-yard field goal to make it 48-29 with 2:51 left in the game.
FINAL SCORE: Browns 48, Steelers 37
