Report: Steelers To Face Browns On Week 12 Thursday Night Football

Schedule leaks—mostly the primetime games—have been surfacing this morning ahead of the official NFL schedule release this evening. The latest report from 93.7 The Fan’s Andrew Fillipponi on X is that the Steelers will travel to the Cleveland Browns in Week 12 for Thursday Night Football.

As of the writing of this post, this is now the third primetime game involving Pittsburgh that we are aware of. The Steelers are reportedly facing the New York Giants in Week 8 on Monday Night Football, and reportedly will face the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas day exclusively on Netflix.

The Steelers had four primetime games when the schedule was released in 2023. Things can always change later in the season with flex scheduling, as primetime games can be taken away or added depending on the scenario late in the season. This is the first divisional matchup that has been leaked or announced so far.

Last season, the Steelers and Browns split the series with a Week 2 win for Pittsburgh and a Week 11 win for Cleveland. Week 11, a miserable 13-10 loss for the Steelers, was the impetus to fire offensive coordinator Matt Canada and promote interim OC Eddie Faulkner and interim play caller Mike Sullivan. Both teams went on to make the playoffs with three representatives from the AFC North. The Browns finished in second place in the division with an 11-6 record, the Steelers third with a 10-7 record.

The Browns will be returning their franchise QB Deshaun Watson from injury after he missed much of the season with a shoulder issue last year. They acquired him via a massive trade and contract extension back in 2022, but he has only started 12 games for them in two seasons due to suspension and injury with an 8-4 overall record. The Steelers won their one game they played against Watson last season in Week 2, which was also a primetime matchup on Monday Night Football. Watson hasn’t played a full season since 2020 with the Houston Texans.

Things will look a little different from last year in this matchup as the Steelers have a completely revamped offense. The offensive line is retooled, the quarterback room is overhauled, and there is a new offensive coordinator in town with Arthur Smith.

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