Five players who saw their stocks go up as the Cleveland Browns kept their playoff hopes alive with a Week 12 win over the Miami Dolphins.
The Cleveland Browns won their third in a row thanks to a collection of stellar performances at FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday.
Now, at 5-6, the Browns play the Steelers in the biggest game the two teams have played against each other since Kelly Holcomb’s 400-yard performance Wild Card loss at Heinz Field in January 2003.
With the Steelers still a game ahead of the Browns at 6-5, the winner will stay on track in the Wild Card picture heading into December. If the season had ended today, the Steelers would hold the sixth seed, claiming the second Wild Card spot.
If you’re banking on the Browns getting in to the playoffs via the Wild Card, they’re going to need some help. At 8-3, Buffalo is running away with first berth. That means there’s four other teams (Steelers, Raiders, Titans, Colts), all 6-5, competing for the final berth.
All the Browns can do is keep winning, while hopefully, some other teams fall off. The Steelers benched Mason Rudolph after a poor performance to eek out a win in Cincinnati, while the Raiders lost to the hapless jets.
The Titans have new life after replacing Marcus Mariota with Ryan Tannehill, while Colts, who actually lost to Miami, are too hard to figure out.
One thing is for sure: The Browns are playing meaningful games after Thanksgiving and have a real shot at the postseason if they can get bump Pittsburgh in Week 13.
Thankfully, Cleveland disposed of the Dolphins, just as they were supposed to, with these five players seeing their stocks go up.