The Pittsburgh Steelers were able to come back for a 26-22 victory against the Cleveland Browns Monday, and that victory wound up making some NFL history. The Steelers went into the fourth quarter down 22-19, and they actually lost seven yards on offense in that quarter. That wound up being the worst offensive production in a comeback win this century, as Jason Starrett of The Athletic noted:
Steelers entered the fourth quarter trailing the Browns 22-19, gained -7 total yards in the final quarter, and won the game 26-22.
Per @TruMediaSports, it’s the fewest yards gained in the fourth quarter by a team that overcame a fourth-quarter deficit to win this century.
— Jason Starrett (@starrettjason) September 19, 2023
It’s not like the Pittsburgh offense was great before that, either. On the night, quarterback Kenny Pickett completed just 15 of 30 passes (50 percent) for 222 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while running back Najee Harris collected 43 yards on 10 carries. But the fourth quarter saw particular issues from that unit, with them posting one drive that lost 11 yards before a punt and one drive that gained six yards before a punt (plus a loss of two yards on the game-ending kneeldown).
Fortunately for the Steelers, though, the Browns’ offense hit its own struggles. Their fourth-quarter drives ended with two fumbles (one of which Pittsburgh linebacker T.J. Watt returned for what proved to be the decisive touchdown), a punt, and a game-ending turnover on downs. Granted, that last one came with some controversy, with Cleveland players lobbying for a pass interference call that wasn’t given. But still, it was definitely the Steelers’ defense that pulled off this comeback, without any help from their historically-bad fourth quarter offense.
