Deshaun Watson Was Sacked Eight Times as the Steelers Beat the Browns 27-6 and Took the AFC North Lead
Watson's day started in the concussion tent and never got comfortable: a brief Shedeur Sanders relief appearance, a strip-sack, eight sacks in all - and Cleveland's first-place standing gone by the final whistle in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh seized control of the AFC North with a 27-6 win against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at Acrisure Stadium, USA TODAY reported - a game that turned, from the first drive, into a long afternoon for Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Watson was removed on Cleveland's opening drive for a concussion evaluation after a helmet-to-helmet hit by safety Jaquan Brisker, which was flagged for roughing the passer, NBC Sports reported. Shedeur Sanders finished the possession, which ended in a Harold Fannin fumble; Watson cleared the check and returned for the next series - and was promptly strip-sacked, with Pittsburgh recovering in Cleveland territory and Rico Dowdle's 9-yard touchdown run making it 7-0.
It did not ease off. Pittsburgh's defense sacked Watson eight times in all - T.J. Watt, Nick Herbig and Alex Highsmith were all credited with sacks, and Patrick Queen stripped Watson for a fumble recovered by Keeanu Benton - and held Cleveland to 34 rushing yards, while Jaylen Warren and Dowdle combined for 200 rushing yards of their own. Watson still passed for more than 300 yards, but the Browns failed to score from the Steelers' 1-yard line as time ran out, and the 27-6 loss costs Cleveland the AFC North standings lead, the Beacon Journal reported.
