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Posted at 11:30 AM EST. 

PITTSBURGH +112 over Cleveland

1:00 PM EST. For some perspective on how lopsided this "rivalry" has been over the years, one only has to do a quick Google search to find out that the Browns have not been favored in the Steel City in three decades. Clay Matthews (that would be junior, the father and namesake of the current Rams linebacker) led the Brownies defense that day when he scored the first major off a fumble in a 51-0 beatdown. It was a simpler time to be sure before smartphones, instant replay and the births of many of the players in this game. Those looking for a streetfight or perhaps some revenge after the ruckus caused by Browns’ defensive lineman Myles Garrett and his attempted murder of Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph might be disappointed to know that Rudoph's days as the starter are numbered, as head coach Mike Tomlin confirmed it would be Devlin Hodges under center. "Duck" as his coach affectionately referred to him this week came in to spark an offense that could not get anything going against the winless Bengals and led his team to the win. Tomlin didn’t just replace Rudolph as the starter; he hit him with a verbal blow that would make Garrett blush. When asked about why "Duck" was getting the nod, Tomlin simply replied, "He's not killed us." Usually, coaches will use kid gloves to save the fragile ego of a young pivot, but not Tomlin; he threw Rudolph right under the bus and for good reason, he stinks and we present the four interceptions he threw against the Bungles as proof. We read one pundit ask hilariously how could Tomlin go back to Rudolph after torching him so spectacularly. The answer is, he won't. And really, are we to believe that the Steelers are going to be any worse with Hodges? “Duck” took home the Walter Payton Award in 2018 while at Samford. That award is given to the most outstanding offensive player in FCS. Other NFLers that have held that hardware include Cooper Kupp, Jimmy Garoppolo and former Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. Not bad company.

For Cleveland, a win in Pittsburgh is going to be a big deal regardless of who suits up in Black and Gold, but there are a ton of red flags to sort through here. First, the Browns beat the Steelers in that brouhaha two weeks ago and they were spotting just a field goal at home. Now, they are on the road and without their best pass rusher. We don't have enough fingers to try and process the math on that one. Secondly, while the Browns are on a modest three-game win streak, one of those victories came over the Dolphins (yawn), while another was a luck fueled 19-16 W over the Bills in a game the Browns probably should have lost if not for a gift call from the officials that overturned a Bills defensive touchdown that would have sealed the deal for Buffalo. Are we to suddenly believe that the dysfunctional Brownies are worthy of being road chalk? Cleveland is a selfish, poorly-coached team that lost six of their first eight games before three unimpressive wins, which includes giving up 24 points to the putrid Dolphins last week. Win or lose, Cleveland is a bad wager this week.

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