Cleveland Browns defensive end Jared Verse said the franchise has turned a corner after securing a 27-24 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football.
"This ain't the old Browns. We've got new swag," Verse said postgame when asked what his message is to the rest of the league, according to NFL Network's Kevin Patra.
"We're a lot more aggressive, we're a lot more, you know, getting after it. This is something different here. We're going to make this whole city rock."
The Browns improved to 3-1 with the win, the first time the franchise has recorded three-plus victories in its first four games since 2021 and only the fourth time the team has done so since returning to Cleveland for the 1999 campaign. The Browns' 147 regular-season wins since the start of 2000 are 20 fewer than the 31st-ranked Raiders during that stretch, according to TruMedia.
Cleveland led 21-10 entering the fourth quarter after a tremendous first half. Then Pittsburgh stormed back and tied the game 24-24 with under two minutes remaining.
Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson led the team into Steelers territory on the next possession but took a sack on second down that pushed the offense to Pittsburgh's 38-yard line. After an incompletion on the next play, kicker Andre Szmyt drilled a game-winning 56-yard field goal with 10 seconds left to secure the win. The kick was the longest of Smyzt's career.
"It's still only three (wins)," head coach Todd Monken said after the game. "And there's a lot of things we can continue to get better at, and we will, because our guys are humble and they're still hungry.
"And it's really cool, because it means the next one continues to matter. That's all you want to be. You just want to be in a position where the games matter, right? That's what we want to be in, that's what our fans want to be in, and that's what we're going to fight for every day."
Cleveland's 0.05 EPA per offensive play was the team's best mark in a game since its 29-24 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Oct. 27, 2024.
The Browns will look to improve to 4-1 for the second time since 2000 when they face the New York Jets in Week 5.
