Cribbs and Massaquoi leave in the first half with injuries; Colt McCoy throws for 281 yards and his first NFL TD in debut.
View full sizeColt McCoy is sent to the ground by the Steelers' James Farrior (right) after throwing an incomplete pass in the first half in Pittsburgh.PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- The Browns lost two players to head injuries and one game to the Steelers on Sunday afternoon at Heinz Field.
They also found out that their rookie quarterback, Colt McCoy, can play.
McCoy's counterpart, Ben Roethlisberger performed well in his season's debut as Pittsburgh prevailed, 28-10.
Roethlisberger opened the season suspended because of conduct unbecoming an NFL player.
The Steelers, coming off a bye, improved to 4-1. The Browns slipped to 1-5 overall, 0-3 on the road.
McCoy, who also made his season's debut, did not embarrass himself against the Steelers' vaunted defense. He threw his first career TD pass with 4:09 left in the fourth quarter -- a 12-yarder to Ben Watson.
The Browns' Josh Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi were knocked out of the game in the first half after hits by Steelers linebacker James Harrison.
Midway through the fourth quarter, the Steelers punted three times in a row because of penalties. The third punt was muffed by Chansi Stuckey and recovered by Pittsburgh at the Cleveland 13.
Minutes later, Rashard Mendenhall scored from 2 yards for a 21-3 lead.
Pittsburgh converted a McCoy interception into a touchdown inside of two minutes to play. Roethlisberger connected with Heath Miller from 14 yards for the final margin.
THIRD QUARTER: The Steelers led the Browns, 14-3, through three quarters.
The Steelers opened the third with the ball and moved into Cleveland territory. They punted.
The Browns took over deep in their end. Colt McCoy showed poise as he presided over a time-consuming drive that stalled in Pittsburgh territory. Reggie Hodges' punt was downed at the 4 -- his third of the game inside the 10.
On Pittsburgh's first play after the punt, Ben Roethlisberger connected with Mike Wallace for 50 yards. Roethlisberger sidestepped a blitz by Eric Wright and delivered the pass a fraction of a second before being blasted by linebacker Scott Fujita.
The Steelers eventually had first-and-goal. On third-and-goal from the 8, Roethlisberger found Hines Ward, who bulled his way into the end zone with 3:13 to play. The extra point made it 14-3.
Later in the quarter, Hodges dropped his fourth punt inside the 10.
SECOND QUARTER: The Steelers led the Browns, 7-3, at halftime at Heinz Field.
Pittsburgh built the 7-3 advantage with 10:40 left. Ben Roethlisberger, releasing the pass a split-second before getting hit, connected with Mike Wallace from 29 yards. Wallace beat Eric Wright.
The TD pass capped an 11-play, 81-yard drive that lasted 6:11. Roethlisberger had made the score possible by finding Emmanuel Sanders for a 22-yard gain on third-and-13 from the Pittsburgh 49.
With 9:12 left in the half, Josh Cribbs scrambled to the right out of the wildcat. Steelers linebacker James Harrison drilled Cribbs high and forced a fumble that the Browns recovered. The game was delayed for several minutes as Cribbs remained on the ground. Cribbs walked off the field to applause and soon went to the locker room.
Cribbs has a head injury and will not return.
Later in the quarter, Harrison knocked Mohamed Massaquoi out of the game with a shot to the head. Neither hit drew a penalty.
The Browns' drive stalled, then punter Reggie Hodges pinned the Steelers at their 2 with 7:54 remaining. Pittsburgh moved the ball to its 40 before punting. Chansi Stuckey struggled with a fair catch at the Cleveland 16.
Strong work by Peyton Hillis helped the Browns achieve a first down at their 44 with two minutes to play. The drive fell apart and the Browns punted, Hodges again pinning the Steelers inside their 10.
FIRST QUARTER: The Browns led the Steelers, 3-0, through one quarter at Heinz Field.
Phil Dawson kicked a 39-yard field goal with 1:51 remaining. Dawson became the Browns' all-time leader with 235 NFL field goals, breaking a tie with Lou Groza.
Cleveland won the toss and elected to receive. A strong return by Josh Cribbs of a short kickoff gave the Browns a first down at their 35.
On the first play from scrimmage, rookie Colt McCoy rolled right and completed an 8-yard pass to Brian Robiskie.
The Browns managed two first downs, including a 19-yard pass from McCoy to Evan Moore on third-and-long, in moving into Pittsburgh territory. But McCoy, after being sacked by Lamarr Woodley, was intercepted by Ryan Clark at the Pittsburgh 18. Clark returned it to the Pittsburgh 29.
McCoy's pass had fluttered toward Ben Watson.
The Steelers cruised down the field until, on third-and-4 from the Cleveland 14, Ben Roethlisberger threw behind his target and into the hands of Joe Haden. Haden made the pick at the 3 and returned it to the Pittsburgh 35.
The Browns turned it into three points. Dawson's field goal capped a seven-play, 14-yard possession that lasted 4:16.
McCoy made his season's debut because of injuries to Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace.
Roethlisberger made his season's debut after a four-game suspension for conduct unbecoming an NFL player.
Pittsburgh's Hines Ward has caught a pass in 183 straight games.