3 Heroes From the Browns Thursday Night Win Over the Steelers

The Browns had plenty of contributions in their 27-24 thriller over Pittsburgh. Here are three players who became heroes.

Oct 1, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger (49) reacts with kicker Andre Szmyt (25) after the game at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Cleveland Browns are leading the AFC North after winning their last three games, including the Thursday night matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The attention is obviously on the stars and the big names in the win, but it takes a whole team to win games. Here are three heroes from the Browns win.

1. Andre Szmyt

A long time ago in week one of last season, Szymt had a rough debut. Browns fans were calling for him to be cut immediately, including several analysts.

The Browns decided to trust him, and now every time Szmyt kicks, the Browns appreciate that decision even more.

Szmyt is 8/8 so far this season and against the Steelers, he got the chance to show off how clutch he is. The Browns marched into the edge of his field goal range and Szmyt delivered a career-long 56-yarder to win it.

It’s a wonderful thing to have a kicker you can have so much faith in, and Szmyt has been that guy. He’s now made 22 straight kicks and has become the model of consistency. Shoutout to punter Corey Bojorquez and long snapper Rex Sunahara too, who have been one of the best special teams cores in the league.

2. Jerry Jeudy

It’s been a weird season for Jeudy. Everyone knew he’d slowly be phased out over the year with Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion, but it happened faster than anyone expected.

He’s fallen to wide receiver three, and had just one target in the past two weeks.

But as Todd Monken has stated multiple times this year, all the fans want to see is good football. As long as you deliver and make plays, the fans will embrace you. That’s exactly what happened for Jeudy on Thursday night.

His first catch of the day came in the third quarter as he picked up a first down. Then he left the game and rarely saw the field again. It wasn’t until the final driver where Jeudy truly delivered.

He hauled in a 17-yard pass, and a 10-yard pass on the game-winning drive to help set up the field goal. He looked like a savvy veteran and gave Deshaun Watson a reliable target in the clutch. It’s easy for a player to mentally check out after losing their role, but Jeudy proved the kind of player he was on that drive.

While his time in Cleveland may be limited, Jeudy definitely proved he still has value as a player and a leader in that game.

3. Jaleel McLaughlin

What a story for McLaughlin. He was signed to the team just a few weeks ago after Dylan Sampson was put on IR with expectations of just being a special teams guy.

He’s had limited carries behind Quinshon Judkins and Rahiem Sanders, but he proved why he should be getting some more in the future. 

Just his second carry as a Cleveland Brown goes for a 28-yard touchdown, and it was an impressive run making multiple defenders miss on his way to the end zone. Cleveland’s run game hasn’t been great this year, but it was McLaughlin getting things going against the Steelers.

After that he may not have gotten another carry, but it clearly sparked something for Judkins.

The Browns need to find more consistency in the run game soon. McLaughlin now has the longest rush of the season. 

Judkins is averaging just three yards per carry, and clearly there’s some hungry backs waiting right behind him.