Steelers 24, Browns 20
Honestly, I don't remember the last time I was so down after a Browns' game. But what sticks with me, 36 hours later, is a strange feeling of optimism.
The last four times the Browns have played the Steelers, they have been blown off the ball.
Not Sunday. The Browns are getting better and playing very hard. Some will say winning is all that matters, and I subscribe to that line of thinking, to a point.
But let's face it. From the moment the Browns began play in 1999, the franchise has been in shambles. The hope, after the hiring of Romeo Crennel and Phil Savage, was that the organization would do things the right way, and get back to respectability.
Anyone who would have expected Savage and Crennel to turn it around in two years was nuts.
But I think the Browns are headed in the right direction.
* It was great seeing Josh Cribbs take a kickoff 92 yards, but it had a bad side -- the defense needed a break. The three and out on the Browns second to last possession didn't help.
* I wish the Browns knew how to save timeouts. The last one taken before the TD really hurt them.