Cleveland Browns win atypical game to their past, but typical to their present | Takeaways

CLEVELAND — Turnabout's fair play.

Over the first nine games of the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers have won games like the one they lost Sunday. They've won by essentially riding an elite defense and some opportunistic plays to sneak out with a win.

So they should recognized when the script's been flipped on them, as it was by the Browns in their 13-10 win.

“Exactly the type of game we anticipated," Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said. "You’ve got a really good defense, in a hostile environment. They had a young quarterback, so we knew they were going to do some things to minimize his exposure to our defensive unit. They weren’t going to take a lot of risks, so we had to get stops the traditional way. … I had a real good feel of it. We had a real good feel of it. We knew what had to happen."

What happened was a Browns team continued to trend the opposite direction of what their circumstances would insist they go. They continued to zag against the way their franchise has zigged for the better part of two-and-a-half decades.

That's why the Browns' last two wins have been as impressive as they have been. It's not just winning nail-biters on last-second Dustin Hopkins field goals.

It's doing that against the two franchises that have lorded over the Browns for the last 25 years — the Baltimore Ravens and, on Sunday, the Steelers. For the first time in 14 tries, the Browns defeated the two in back-to-back games.

Browns vs. Steelers: Cleveland defense rises in big moments to win 'boxing match' with Pittsburgh

"It was special," cornerback Denzel Ward said. "It was special. This team is coming together. We just got to keep playing for each other, keep playing hard, keep playing fast, and just take it a week at a time."

Or a play at a time. Or a series at a time. Or, however they want to distill it down.

With 1:42 remaining, the Steelers got the ball back at their own 30 in a tie game. Everyone in the stadium, whether they were wearing orange and brown or twirling a Terrible Towel, had seen the way this story had ended for plenty of years.

Three consecutive Kenny Pickett incompletions and a punt? Yeah, that's not how it's typically gone.

Typical, though, isn't this Browns season. From the quarterback carousel that's turned around Deshaun Watson, whose season is now over, to the injuries they continue to overcome to the way they're winning game like Sunday's — pick your Sunday, really — it's atypical for Cleveland's NFL franchise.

Or, take the opinion of All-Pro left guard Joel Bitonio, the longest-tenured current Browns player.

"All wins are beautiful," Bitonio said. "All wins are beautiful. We'll take them how we can get 'em."

Ogbo Okoronkwo shows off 'dad strength' to Steelers

Defensive end Ogbo Okoronkwo became a father on Saturday night to a son, Indigo. On Sunday, Okoronkwo showed off what being a new dad can do for some.

Okoronwko, 28, had a team-high four tackles for loss against Pittsburgh. He added a sack, a quarterback hit and five combined tackles.

"You saw the dad strength out there, right?" Okoronkwo said. "I was doing my thing. I felt strong. It was cool."

Okoronkwo's biggest play may have come with just over six minutes left in the first half. With the Steelers in a third-and-2 at the Browns 49, he got in to sack Pickett for an 11-yard loss.

Pittsburgh punted on the next play. The Browns took that punt and turned it into a 17-play, 77-yard march for a 10-0 halftime lead.

For Okoronkwo, as nice as the win was, it paled to Indigo.

"Can't lie that it was life changing," he said. "The moment I laid my eyes on him, something in me changed. It was really beautiful. Can't wait to go see him."

Dawand Jones, James Hudson III play right tackle roulette for Browns

Dawand Jones was active for the Browns on Sunday, which most people assumed meant the big right tackle was going to be back in the lineup as the starter. Not so, though, as James Hudson III went out and took the first snap with the offense,

And the second one. And the third one. And, well, you get the point.

Jones finally appeared for the Browns on their sixth offensive play. From there on, the two tackles play a constant game of who's in and who's out, although head coach Kevin Stefanski acknowledged a method to the rotation.

"Yeah, I mean, Dawand's working through that injury," Stefanski said "I wouldn't say he's all the way back. So I have a ton of confidence in James and felt like we could get Dawand in there as well."

The rotation worked in one regard. Steelers star edge rusher T.J. Watt was essentially a non-factor in the game, at least in terms of getting to Thompson-Robinson.

Watt managed just one sack on the day. He did have three quarterback hits.

Nick Chubb watches teammates avenge his loss

Nick Chubb's season ended in Week 2 in Pittsburgh when he suffered a season-ending knee injury. The injury has required a pair of surgeries to repair all of the ligament damage.

Chubb has rarely been seen in public since the injury. That changed on Sunday with the Steelers in Cleveland for the return engagement.

The Browns introduced their starting defensive lineup before the game, with Garrett rounding out the introductions. Except that he wasn't the last, as the final person introduced was Chubb, who walked with crutched out of the tunnel as a massive roar came from the crowd.

Chubb was also shown on the videoboards later during the game while he was watching his teammates beat the Steelers.

"Why do you have to come after me?," Garrett joked. "No, I love seeing Nick getting the praise he deserves. He's a hell of a guy, outstanding player. We're not going to see another one like him for quite a while and man, I'm just glad to have him around us at games and can't wait till he's back suited up and we're going to continue to play for him and do our very best because he's the guy."

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on Twitter at @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns win atypical game to past, but typical to present: Takeaways