Browns vs. Steelers: What Are Experts Saying About Pittsburgh?
The NFL season finally kicks off on Sunday for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers welcome the Cleveland Browns to Pittsburgh in a division showdown to get this party started.
The Steelers are hoping to break the cycle of back-to-back 8-8 seasons, and return to prominence in the AFC North. Cleveland, on the other hand, continues to go through more turnover as it tries to find ways to be competitive.
Every week, one of the biggest parts of the NFL media scene is picking game winners. Writers and columnists give a week of hot takes about all the teams in the NFL, but as the weekend approaches it is time to put it out there and make your picks.
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Experts all over the Internet put their names to every NFL game, and that includes the Browns and Steelers. Here is a breakdown of some of the top NFL prognosticators, and how they think this game is going to go.
| Expert | Affiliation | Pick |
| Pete Prisco | CBS Sports | Steelers |
| Jason La Canfora | CBS Sports | Steelers |
| WIll Brinson | CBS Sports | Steelers |
| Dan Hanzus | NFL Network | Steelers |
| Gregg Rosenthal | NFL Network | Steelers |
| Kevin Patra | NFL Network | Steelers |
| Marc Sessler | NFL Network | Steelers |
| Chris Wesseling | NFL Network | Steelers |
| Mike Garafolo | Fox Sports | Steelers |
| Alex Marvez | Fox Sports | Steelers |
| Brendon Ayanbadejo | Fox Sports | Steelers |
| Jimmy Traina | Fox Sports | Browns |
| Mike Golic | ESPN | Steelers |
| Merril Hoge | ESPN | Steelers |
| Ron Jaworski | ESPN | Steelers |
| Chris Mortensen | ESPN | Steelers |
| Adam Schefter | ESPN | Steelers |
| Mark Schlereth | ESPN | Steelers |
| Vinnie Iyer | Sporting News | Steelers |
| Bleacher Report Experts | Bleacher Report | Steelers |
| Mike Freeman (Bleacher Report) | Bleacher Report | Browns |
| Mike Florio | Pro Football Talk | Steelers |
Well, these results are interesting to say the least. Other than Bleacher Report’s own Mike Freeman and Jimmy Traina of Fox Sports, the rest of the experts believe that the Steelers are going to come out of Week 1 victorious. Sporting News NFL writer Vinnie Iyer called this game his “lock of the week” and picked the Steelers to win 26-10.
It does make sense to lean this way. The Steelers and Browns have faced off 28 times since 2000, and the Steelers hold a 24-4 advantage. In fact, the Steelers haven’t lost to the Browns at home in 11 seasons. That is less about a rivalry, and more of a hammer-and-nail relationship.
I can respect Freeman and Traina for thinking outside the box, but if you are in your office suicide pool, Pittsburgh might just be your best bet this week. The Browns are still looking for answers on offense, and Pittsburgh is motivated not to repeat their 0-4 start of 2013.
As the season goes on, these picks are going to get much more divided, but this week at least, you either have a sure thing or a surefire jinx.
You can find all the picks from the table at the links below:
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