Frustrated Pittsburgh Steelers fans and critical media members have used the phrase “Typical Tomlin Loss” to describe ill-timed, momentum-halting, inexplicable defeats during the Mike Tomlin era.

The franchise’s result in Cleveland on Sunday was the perfect example.

Heading into the game with three straight wins, all Mike Tomlin’s Steelers had to do to clinch the AFC North was beat a 3-12 Browns team with a rookie quarterback.

Instead, they lost 13-6.

The Steelers are now 1-6-1 in their last eight games in Cleveland. Most of those failures have come against terrible Cleveland clubs.

Now the Steelers are going to have to win for a second time this season against their hated AFC North foes from Baltimore. If they lose to the Ravens at Acrisure Stadium next weekend, Baltimore claims the division title.

So, essentially, the Steelers could blow a comfortable division lead for a second time this season.

“It’s our job. We’re playing all 17 (games) here,” quarterback Aaron Rodgers said after the defeat.

Sure. But if they could’ve figured out how to score at least one touchdown against the last-place Browns, they could’ve locked up the division in 16 of them. Now a loss next week ensures a ninth straight season without a playoff win.

“Win or lose, you move onto the next game,” Rodgers said. “I feel confident we’ll go home and win next week.”

I’m glad Rodgers feels that way. Because based on how that offense looked against the Browns, I’m not even confident they’ll score next week, let alone win.

On a day we hoped to brag about many Steelers’ “Feats of Strength” for the first time after Festivus 2025, we are instead launching into the “Airing of Grievances” after yet another maddening faceplant in Northeast Ohio.

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Airing of Grievances

Dog of a start: The Steelers were awful to begin the game in the Dawg Pound.

They didn’t do much to pressure rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders early. He led a game-opening field goal drive, highlighted by a 19-yard completion to Brenden Bates.

The Steelers followed that with an offensive three-and-out that didn’t even feature a pass, but did feature a Jaylen Warren fumble on the first carry (which the Steelers recovered). Kenneth Gainwell took a third-down handoff and came up short.

After the ensuing punt, Sanders connected with Cedric Tillman on a 42-yard pass and Harold Fannin Jr. for a 28-yard touchdown.

“Giving up the touchdown, that’s the difference in the game,” defensive captain Cameron Heyward said. “We had a chance to play on the ball. We didn’t. Then we controlled the line of scrimmage from there on out. But that’s a lot of tough sledding against that team over there. They have a good defense as well. It was a battle for field position in the second half.”

The banged-up Steelers secondary (playing without James Pierre, Brandin Echols and DeShon Elliott) was a mess over the first two series.

Cleveland closed the first quarter with a 10-0 lead, outgaining the Steelers, 127-55. Rodgers had just 12 passing yards. Sanders had 101.

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Conversion aversion: The Steelers finished 3 of 18 on third and fourth-down conversions. The most egregious was a decision to hand off to Gainwell on a third-and-4 near midfield with 5 minutes, 37 seconds left in the game. He lost 2 yards, and the Steelers had to punt.

Running there is one thing — if you plan to go for it on fourth down. But if punting was ever an option, you need to pass on third down.

In the waning seconds of the game, Rodgers missed on three consecutive passes to Marquez Valdes-Scantling in the end zone, resulting in a turnover on downs and an end to the game.

“We just didn’t make enough plays,” Tomlin said. “I thought they played well. I thought the game was kind of unfolding in the way that you would anticipate, but we never made that signature play that kind of got us over the hump. That generally is the deciding factor in games like this. We generally make them. We didn’t make them today.”

In the second half, the Steelers’ possessions went like this:

• Three punts.

• Two turnovers on downs.

• A missed field goal.

The Steelers got to the red zone twice the entire game. Neither trip resulted in a touchdown.

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What we expected: With no DK Metcalf or Calvin Austin, the injury-riddled Steelers receiving corps was every bit as underwhelming as Steelers fans feared it would be.

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No wide receiver had a catch before the 1:11 mark of the second quarter. Valdes-Scantling wiped out a big gain to Scotty Miller in the first quarter with an offensive pass interference flag and had a ball go off his facemask in the first quarter.

He also didn’t get his eyes around early enough on a route along the Browns’ sideline that would’ve gone for a first down. Plus, Adam Thielen failed to secure a good throw from Rodgers in tight coverage by Tyson Campbell.

In all, the wide receivers totaled eight catches on 21 targets for 60 yards.

Remember all the complaints from fans and media members about how the Steelers were setting themselves up for the same problem they had last year when George Pickens was injured in December? The concerns weren’t just about a lack of weapons on the outside besides Metcalf. It was how little the Steelers would have if Metcalf weren’t on the field late in the season.

But, yeah, the Steelers know better than all of us, and that was just chatter and not really something to worry about.

Am I right?

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Nothing out of something: The Steelers failed to build on multiple opportunities for momentum after Chris Boswell’s second-quarter field goal.

On Cleveland’s first drive of the second quarter, the Steelers stopped the Browns on a fourth down from the Steelers’ 33-yard line. When the Steelers took over, they had to punt it back within four plays.

Cleveland’s next possession ended on a 27-yard interception return by Jack Sawyer.

But the Steelers did nothing with that either, as they failed on a mysterious fourth-and-1 end zone shot down the sideline to Miller from Cleveland’s 22-yard line. The 5-foot-9 Miller was covered by the 6-1 Campbell.

Nick Herbig also dropped a potential pick-6 in the second quarter when he made a good break on a Sanders pass but couldn’t secure it.

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While we are at it: Along those lines, the Steelers held the ball for more than eight minutes on a drive that bridged the third and fourth quarters.

It lasted 13 plays and resulted in no points.

The possession began to stall on the first snap of the fourth quarter. A handoff went to Warren for no yards. It was followed by a completion to Jonnu Smith that lost 4 yards and a sack of Rodgers. Boswell came on to miss a 54-yard field goal attempt.

Once Cleveland got the ball back, Sanders threw a terrible interception to Kyle Dugger.

Again, though, the Steelers did nothing with the turnover. At one point on that drive after Dugger’s pick, the Steelers had a third-and-1. Tackle Dylan Cook was nailed for a false start.

On the resulting third-and-6, Rodgers threw an incompletion, and Corliss Waitman had to punt.