Browns Likely to Start New QB Against Steelers

Football Betting Lines

12/07/2006 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Derek Anderson is expected to receive his first NFL start on Thursday night, when the second-year quarterback leads the Cleveland Browns into Heinz Field to face the arch rival Pittsburgh Steelers.

Anderson burst on the scene last Sunday, when he relieved an ailing Charlie Frye and led the Browns to an unlikely 31-28 come-from-behind overtime win against the Chiefs. The Oregon State product completed 12-of-21 passes for 171 yards with a pair of touchdown passes and one interception in a little over a half of action, despite having never thrown a regular season NFL pass before last week. With Frye's injured wrist not expected to be sufficiently healed to allow him to play on a short week, it will likely be up to Anderson to snap Cleveland's six-game losing streak to the hated Steelers.

Anderson, who helped the Browns avoid what would have been a third home loss in as many weeks last Sunday, would become Cleveland's 10th starting quarterback since the franchise was re-born in 1999, and its fifth since 2004.

The Steelers come into Thursday's game clinging to a thread of hope in the playoff race, but would need to win its remaining four games and get a great deal of help in order to realize that quest. The reigning Super Bowl champs have won three of their last four since finishing the first half of the season at 2-6, including last Sunday's 20-3 home victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Bill Cowher's team moved to 4-2 at Heinz Field this season with the victory, compared to 1-5 in unfriendly confines.

Pittsburgh won in Cleveland, 24-20, in Week 11, rebounding from a 20-10 fourth-quarter deficit to earn the victory over the Browns.

SERIES HISTORY

The Browns lead the regular season series with the Steelers, which dates back to 1950, by a 55-52 count. Pittsburgh has won 11 of its last 12 regular season games against Cleveland, however, including the aforementioned 24-20 win in C- Town in Week 11. The Browns have lost six straight against the Steelers since scoring a 33-13 win at Heinz Field in 2003. Cleveland was a 34-21 loser when it traveled to the Steel City last season.

The clubs have also met twice in the postseason, with Pittsburgh winning both times. Cowher's club picked up a 29-9 victory in a 1994 AFC Divisional Playoff, and won a 36-33 thriller in a 2002 AFC First-Round Playoff.

Cowher is 20-5 in his head coaching career against the Browns, for whom he played from 1980 through 1983 and served as an assistant from 1985 through 1988. Cleveland's Romeo Crennel is 0-3 versus both Cowher and the Steelers as a head coach.

BROWNS OFFENSE VS. STEELERS DEFENSE

What was most impressive about Anderson's performance last week was that it came against a generally strong Kansas City defense, and that the 23-year-old signal-caller showed poise beyond his years in engineering two long touchdown drives in the final 12 minutes of regulation. Tight end Steve Heiden (28 receptions, 2 TD) was the recipient of both Anderson touchdown passes, and running back Reuben Droughns (21 receptions) was another popular target, hauling in four second-half passes totaling 39 yards. No. 2 receiver Joe Jurevicius (24 receptions, 2 TD) turned in his most productive day in a Cleveland uniform, catching a season-high six balls for 75 yards. Anderson will look to get more in sync this week with the team's top two receivers, wideout Braylon Edwards (46 receptions, 4 TD) and tight end Kellen Winslow (67 receptions, 3 TD). Edwards did not have a reception in the second half last Sunday, and Winslow finished the day with only one catch for 26 yards. A Browns offensive line that has struggled with protection for much of the year did a good job against Kansas City, allowing just one sack.

Since Anderson will have enough problems contending with Joey Porter (7 sacks, 2 INT), Clark Haggans (5.5 sacks, 1 INT), and the Steelers' vaunted zone blitz, it is probably fortunate for him that starting safeties Troy Polamalu (knee) and Ryan Clark (groin) will both miss Thursday's game due to injury. The depleted secondary the Browns will be looking to test will instead include safeties Tyrone Carter (25 tackles, 2 sacks) and rookie Anthony Smith (13 tackles) along with cornerbacks Bryant McFadden (41 tackles, 2 INT) and Deshea Townsend (31 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 INT). Of that group, only Townsend was in the Steelers' opening day starting lineup. McFadden had nine tackles and an interception against Tampa Bay last Sunday, while Townsend chipped in with five stops and his second sack of the year. The Steelers sacked Buccaneers QB Bruce Gradkowski five times in the game, with Porter leading the charge with a pair of sacks. Pittsburgh is tied for 5th in the league in sacks with 34 as Week 14 begins.

In order to take the pressure off of the young Frye, Cleveland is going to need a strong performance from Droughns. After injuries and ineffectiveness had temporarily placed him second on the depth chart behind Jason Wright, Droughns (546 rushing yards, 4 TD) was back last week with 14 carries for 70 yards and a touchdown to go along with his 48 key receiving yards. Droughns did not play against the Steelers in Week 11, and was held to 92 yards on 27 combined carries (3.4 yards per attempt) in two games against Pittsburgh last year. Wright (150 rushing yards, 5 receptions), who started and ran for a career-high 74 yards on 18 carries versus Pittsburgh in Week 11, rushed 11 times for 25 yards last week, also adding a 54-yard reception out of the backfield. The Browns are 30th in the league in rushing offense (85.9 yards per game) as Week 14 begins.

The Steelers' front seven remains one of the best in the business, as Pittsburgh ranks a healthy eighth in the league against the run (100.3 yards per game) on the year. The three-man line of Casey Hampton (31 tackles) at nose tackle and Aaron Smith (44 tackles, 3.5 sacks) and Brett Keisel (46 tackles, 4 sacks) on the ends has been among the most reliable areas on the team this season, and was largely responsible for limiting Tampa Bay's Cadillac Williams to 27 yards on 11 carries last Sunday. Smith and Keisel combined for 10 tackles in the game, and both players had a sack. Inside linebackers James Farrior (97 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 INT) and Larry Foote (70 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 INT) have made plays behind the down linemen. Farrior led the Steelers with 11 stops and a forced fumble last Sunday, while Foote recorded six stops and his first interception of the year in the game.

STEELERS OFFENSE VS. BROWNS DEFENSE

Seeking to avoid the major mistake on Thursday night will be Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (2727 passing yards, 14 TD), who leads the NFL with 20 interceptions through 12 games. Roethlisberger has thrown two or more picks seven times this season, games in which the Steelers have gone 1-6 (the lone win was against the Browns). Pittsburgh is 3-1 when "Big Ben" throws one pick or fewer, including last week's win over Tampa Bay, when he completed 12- of-25 passes for 198 yards, a pair of scores, and one INT. Roethlisberger will be without starting receivers Hines Ward (knee) and Cedrick Wilson (ankle) this week, meaning rookie Santonio Holmes (33 receptions, 1 TD) and Nate Washington (30 receptions, 3 TD) will be asked to step up. Holmes, the team's first-round draft pick out of Ohio State, will be making his first career start, while Washington will be trying to build on an outing in which he caught three passes for a team-high 78 yards. Tight ends Heath Miller (29 receptions, 4 TD) and Jerame Tuman (5 receptions, 1 TD) both caught Roethlisberger touchdown passes last Sunday. The Pittsburgh line has given up 40 sacks on the year, but surrendered just one to the Buccaneers last week.

The Browns did a good job of rattling Roethlisberger in their last meeting with the Steelers, picking the quarterback off three times and sacking him twice. Cornerback Daven Holly (45 tackles, 3 INT) had two of the interceptions in that game, outside linebacker Willie McGinest (32 tackles, 4 sacks, 1 INT) had a sack and a pick, and fellow OLB Kamerion Wimbley (42 tackles, 7.5 sacks) brought the Super Bowl-winner down once as well. Last week, the Browns allowed Chiefs quarterback Trent Green to throw for 297 yards and four touchdowns, though Holly managed his third interception of the year and Wimbley raised his team-leading sack total to 7.5 with one takedown of Green. Elsewhere in the secondary, safeties Brian Russell (51 tackles, 1 INT) and Sean Jones (73 tackles, 5 INT) combined for 15 tackles. End Simon Fraser (14 tackles, 4 sacks), subbing for the injured Orpheus Roye (knee), had a sack and caused a Green fumble.

Though he enters Week 14 just 24 yards shy of his second straight 1,000-yard season, Steelers running back Willie Parker (976 rushing yards, 29 receptions, 12 TD) will come into Thursday's contest looking to shake off a recent lack of productivity. Parker has gone over the 100-yard mark in just one of his last seven games, and the North Carolina product has averaged only 2.7 yards per carry over his past three contests. Parker was limited to 61 yards on 22 carries against Tampa Bay last Sunday, and did not score a touchdown for the second straight game. If he continues to struggle, Parker could hand some of his carries to backup Najeh Davenport (117 rushing yards, 1 TD, 12 receptions), who had eight touches totaling 30 yards against the Buccaneers. Pittsburgh is 19th in the league in rushing offense (105 yards per game) after finishing fifth in that category last season.

Cleveland ranks just 24th in the league against the run (131.8 yards per game), but did a decent job against Parker in its last meeting against the Steelers. Parker scored two touchdowns in the final 4:14 of the game, including one on a four-yard pass play in the final minute, but was limited to just 46 rushing yards on 16 carries for the afternoon. Inside linebackers Andra Davis (92 tackles, 2 INT, 1 sack) and D'Qwell Jackson (86 tackles) have taken on the brunt of the team's run-stopping duties this season, and rank 1-2 on the team in stops as Week 14 commences. Up front, the Browns will be relying on nose tackle Ted Washington (33 tackles) and ends Fraser and Alvin McKinley (38 tackles, 1 sack) to slow the Steelers' inside run on Thursday.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

Normally, the prospect of facing the Steelers on the road in your first career start would be troubling for a young quarterback, but there is some reason to believe that Anderson can play reasonably well if called upon. The Steelers secondary has been disappointing and is now missing two starters, meaning some big plays down the field to Edwards or Winslow could be in order if the Cleveland line can protect Anderson. Also, Roethlisberger's propensity for making mistakes should set the Browns up with some short fields. Look for this game to be close deep into the fourth quarter, when the Steelers flex their muscles, rattle Anderson into an untimely miscue or two, and walk away with a narrow victory.

Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Steelers 20, Browns 17