Divisional Round: Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers (Three Rivers Stadium), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff: Sat January 7, 1995 at 12:30pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.[1][2]
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. Cleveland Browns traveling to Pittsburgh Steelers at Three Rivers Stadium, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Three Rivers Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Cleveland Browns versus Pittsburgh Steelers in the Divisional Round. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Cleveland Browns-Pittsburgh Steelers cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 12-4 | L1 |
| Cleveland Browns | 11-5 | W1 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 3-13 | W1 |
| Houston Oilers | 2-14 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 10-6 | W1 |
| New England Patriots | 10-6 | W7 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 8-8 | W2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 7-9 | L3 |
| New York Jets | 6-10 | L5 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Diego Chargers | 11-5 | W2 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 9-7 | W2 |
| Los Angeles Raiders | 9-7 | L1 |
| Denver Broncos | 7-9 | L3 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 6-10 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 13-3 | L1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7-9 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7-9 | W1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 4-12 | L7 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Vikings | 10-6 | W1 |
| Chicago Bears | 9-7 | L1 |
| Detroit Lions | 9-7 | L1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 9-7 | W3 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 6-10 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 12-4 | L1 |
| New York Giants | 9-7 | W6 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 8-8 | -- |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 7-9 | L7 |
| Washington Redskins | 3-13 | W1 |
Cleveland Browns None, Pittsburgh Steelers None
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Browns | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 03399 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 3 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 324272929 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Gary Anderson 39 yard field goal | 0-3 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Eric Green 2 yard pass from Neil O'Donnell ( Gary Anderson kick) | 0-10 |
| Steelers | John Williams 26 yard rush ( Gary Anderson kick) | 0-17 |
| Browns | Matt Stover 22 yard field goal | 3-17 |
| Steelers | Yancey Thigpen 9 yard pass from Neil O'Donnell ( Gary Anderson kick) | 3-24 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Steelers | Gary Anderson 40 yard field goal | 3-27 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Browns | Keenan McCardell 20 yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (pass failed) | 9-27 |
| Steelers | Safety, Lake sacked Testaverde in end zone | 9-29 |
Pittsburgh Steelers defeated Cleveland Browns 29-9 at Three Rivers Stadium in the Divisional Round. The final scoring play was Steelers: Safety, Lake sacked Testaverde in end zone. Top line of the day: Neil O'Donnell: 186 pass yards on 16-of-23, 2 TD, 0 INT. Pittsburgh Steelers move on to the conference final.[1][2]
Pittsburgh Steelers walked out of Three Rivers Stadium as the team that survived a Divisional Round Cleveland Browns will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 29-9. The final scoring play came from Steelers: Safety, Lake sacked Testaverde in end zone. Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Pittsburgh Steelers move on to a conference championship.
Pittsburgh Steelers 29, Cleveland Browns 9. Round: Divisional Round. Attendance: 58185. Q1: 1 scoring play. Q2: 4 scoring plays. Q3: 1 scoring play. Q4: 2 scoring plays. Top performers:
- Neil O'Donnell: 186 pass yards on 16-of-23, 2 TD, 0 INT
- Barry Foster: 133 rush yards on 24 carries
- Ernie Mills: 5 catches for 117 yards
Divisional Round, played at Three Rivers Stadium. Final: Cleveland Browns 9, Pittsburgh Steelers 29, with Pittsburgh Steelers taking the result by 20. **First quarter**
- Steelers: Gary Anderson 39 yard field goal
Second quarter
- Steelers: Eric Green 2 yard pass from Neil O'Donnell ( Gary Anderson kick)
- Steelers: John Williams 26 yard rush ( Gary Anderson kick)
- Browns: Matt Stover 22 yard field goal
- Steelers: Yancey Thigpen 9 yard pass from Neil O'Donnell ( Gary Anderson kick)
Third quarter
- Steelers: Gary Anderson 40 yard field goal
Fourth quarter
- Browns: Keenan McCardell 20 yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (pass failed)
- Steelers: Safety, Lake sacked Testaverde in end zone
Top performers
- Neil O'Donnell: 186 pass yards on 16-of-23, 2 TD, 0 INT
- Barry Foster: 133 rush yards on 24 carries
- Ernie Mills: 5 catches for 117 yards
| Browns | Steelers | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 10 | 23 |
| Total Yards | 186 | 424 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 13/31 | 16/23 |
| Pass yards | 144 | 186 |
| Pass TD | 1 | 2 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 0 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 0 |
| Sack yards lost | 13 | 0 |
| Net pass yards | 131 | 186 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 17 | 51 |
| Rush yards | 55 | 238 |
| Rush TD | 0 | 1 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 0 | 2 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 1 |
| Penalties | 2 | 4 |
| Penalty yards | 17 | 50 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLE | |||||
| Vinny Testaverde | 13/31 | 144 | 1 | 2 | |
| PIT | |||||
| Neil O'Donnell | 16/23 | 186 | 2 | 0 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLE | ||||
| Earnest Byner | 9 | 43 | 0 | 9 |
| Leroy Hoard | 3 | 8 | 0 | 4 |
| Eric Metcalf | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| PIT | ||||
| Barry Foster | 24 | 133 | 0 | 28 |
| Bam Morris | 22 | 60 | 0 | 17 |
| John Williams | 2 | 43 | 1 | 26 |
| Mike Tomczak | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLE | ||||
| Keenan McCardell | 3 | 47 | 1 | 21 |
| Michael Jackson | 3 | 47 | 0 | 24 |
| Eric Metcalf | 2 | 18 | 0 | 13 |
| Earnest Byner | 1 | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Mark Carrier | 2 | 8 | 0 | 4 |
| Leroy Hoard | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Brian Kinchen | 1 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| PIT | ||||
| Ernie Mills | 5 | 117 | 0 | 50 |
| Eric Green | 3 | 21 | 1 | 10 |
| John Williams | 4 | 20 | 0 | 8 |
| Andre Hastings | 2 | 18 | 0 | 9 |
| Yancey Thigpen | 2 | 10 | 1 | 9 |
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