Kevin Stefanski Doesn't Waver, DTR Delivers As Browns Move To 7-3

The Browns put on a clinic in the first half on how to play a football game with a backup quarterback. Things got tight in the second half, but Kevin Stefanski didn't waver and the Browns came out on top

Cleveland had a very obvious game plan on Sunday against the Steelers. They were going to possess the football, lean on the defense and really grind out a victory. 

If it wasn't for a David Njoku drop in the Dawg Pound end zone with six seconds remaining in the second quarter, the Browns played nearly a flawless half of complimentary football. 

The offense moved the ball enough to sustain drives, the special teams groups were great in the punt game, and the defense was pitching a shutout. All the Browns needed to do was sustain that play and they would coast to an easy win.

Not so fast said the Pittsburgh Steelers. On the very first drive of the second half the Steelers came out and broke off a big one. Two missed tackles led to a Jaylen Warren 74-yard touchdown run and the Steelers were all the way back in the game. 

The Browns answered that long touchdown drive with back-to-back drives ending in a punt. The energy in the stadium died and the Browns found themselves in a game that was being dictated by the Steelers and orchestrated by Mike Tomlin.

That's when Kevin Stefanski earned his stripes. 

There were a number of times that Stefanski could have abandoned the "ground and pound" game plan, but he stuck to it. His duo of Kareem Hunt and Jerome Ford carried the ball 24 times for a total of 67 yards. 

Not only did Stefanski stay on the ground, but every pass attempt felt like Thompson-Robinson was protected. The decisions in the passing game were quick, but outside one one pass, the ball was never in danger and the Browns continued to possess the football.

This style of football would lead to eight Browns punts, but it would also lead to a Browns walk-off 13-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Cleveland is now 7-3 and in second place in the AFC North, just a half-game back of the Baltimore Ravens. 

Kevin Stefanski cemented himself as the Browns head coach for a long time with today's victory and performance from his Cleveland Browns. This team believes in him and he continues to show why he needs to be the Cleveland play-caller for a long time.