The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 17 matchup between the Browns and Steelers.
Find a breakdown of every Week 17 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Pittsburgh | Rank | @ | Cleveland | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -4.0 | Spread | 4.0 | ||
| 19.0 | Implied Total | 15.0 | ||
| 24.3 | 11 | Points/Gm | 16.4 | 31 |
| 23.3 | 17 | Points All./Gm | 23.7 | 20 |
| 56.7 | 29 | Plays/Gm | 61.9 | 16 |
| 67.6 | 32 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 58.9 | 6 |
| 5.3 | 19 | Off. Yards/Play | 4.3 | 32 |
| 5.4 | 17 | Def. Yards/Play | 4.7 | 3 |
| 42.24% | 21 | Rush% | 40.09% | 27 |
| 57.76% | 12 | Pass% | 59.91% | 6 |
| 39.35% | 5 | Opp. Rush % | 48.19% | 28 |
| 60.65% | 28 | Opp. Pass % | 51.81% | 5 |
- Cleveland has a league-worst 2-9 record (.182) in games they have led.
- Pittsburgh is one of two teams (Denver being the other) that have led in every game this season.
- Cleveland has allowed a league-high 104 points off turnovers.
- The Steelers have scored 98 points off turnovers, 2nd in the league.
- Pittsburgh has scored a touchdown on 28.8% of their drives on the road, 4th in the league.
- The Steelers have thrown to their wide receivers on a league-low 43.1% of targets.
- The Browns have thrown to wide receivers 43.9% of the time, 31st.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Aaron Rodgers: Rodgers has played some of his best football this season over the past three weeks.
Rodgers has at least 15 fantasy points in all three games, with his two highest yardage totals of the season coming over that run.
That yardage spike has stemmed from better downfield passing.
Rodgers has completed 53.6% (15 of 28) of his passes 10 or more yards downfield the past three weeks.
Before this recent stretch, he had completed 38.7% (29 of 75) of those throws, which was 31st in the league.
Even with his recent surge, Rodgers is more of a floor-based QB2 here.
He has only three QB1 scoring weeks this season, while the Browns have allowed only two QB1 scoring weeks this season.
Rodgers was the QB16 (17.5 points) when these teams met in Week 6, completing 21 of 30 passes for 235 yards and 2 touchdowns.
DK Metcalf had 4 catches for 95 yards and a touchdown in that game.
We are losing Metcalf to a suspension, casting some added shade on a matchup that is already not glowing.
One thing you can bet on here is that Rodgers will be getting the ball out quickly.
In the first matchup between these teams, Rodgers got rid of the football within 2.5 seconds on 64.5% of his dropbacks.
He has not topped that in a game since.
On those dropbacks, Rodgers was 15 of 20 (75%) for 194 yards (9.7 Y/A) with a touchdown.
Shedeur Sanders: Sanders has followed up his breakout against the Titans with scoring weeks as the QB31 (3.5 points) and QB24 (11.2 points) against the Bears and Bills.
Since Sanders took over as the starter, he has completed 58.3% of his passes (26th) for 7.0 Y/A (21st), a 4% touchdown rate (21st), and a 4.6% interception rate (29th).
That Tennessee game was his only week higher than QB18, leaving him as a volatile QB2.
The Steelers have been playing well on defense despite a storm of injuries.
Over their past eight games, the Steelers have allowed a 61.4% completion rate (11th), 6.6 yards per pass attempt (11th), and a 4.4% touchdown rate (14th).
The Steelers gave up counting yardage (364 yards) to Jared Goff on Sunday, which was on the table when these teams played in Week 6.
In that game. Dillon Gabriel threw the ball 52 times.
Cleveland threw the ball 6.2% over expectations in that game, their second-highest rate of the season.
Running Back
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More Week 17 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Cowboys @ Commanders | Christmas Day |
| Lions @ Vikings | Christmas Day |
| Broncos @ Chiefs | Christmas Day |
| Texans @ Chargers | Saturday -- 4:30 p.m. ET |
| Ravens @ Packers | Saturday -- 8:00 p.m. ET |
| Cardinals @ Bengals | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Steelers @ Browns | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Saints @ Titans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jaguars @ Colts | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bucs @ Dolphins | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Patriots @ Jets | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Seahawks @ Panthers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Giants @ Raiders | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Eagles @ Bills | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Bears @ 49ers | Sunday Night Football |
| Rams @ Falcons | Monday Night Football |
