CLEVELAND -- In reality, the Steelers should be happy they came away with at least a tie in Sunday's 21-21 slogfest against the Browns.
History was decidedly not on their side.
Since the Browns came back into the league in 1999, there have been 137 games in which a team has won the turnover battle by five or more. Those teams have gone 132-4-1.
The Browns are responsible for two of those losses and now the tie. It's tough to do.
The Steelers turned the ball over six times on Sunday and forced just one of their own. You typically get blown out in those kind of games.
"We had a lot of yardage," said center Maurkice Pouncey. "But it didn't reflect on the game because of the turnovers."
The Steelers had 472 yards in the game compared to 327 for Cleveland. But they also had 12 penalties for 116 yards, while Cleveland had 11 for 87.
Ben Roethlisberger threw three interceptions, including this one to rookie Denzel Ward, one of two the fourth pick in the draft had in this game.
That one was obviously not Roethlisberger's fault, but he did also have two lost fumbles on sacks, while James Conner also lost a fumble.
Nobody was blaming the rainy weather, particularly since the Browns had just one turnover.
"It was a weather game for them too," said Mike Tomlin. "So we don't seek comfort in that regard. They did a better job of dealing with it, if it was a factor, than we did."
This from a team that had preached ball security throughout the offseason and training camp under new offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner.
It all added up to a tie that felt like a loss for the Steelers.
"We're not here to have ties," said linebacker Vince Williams. "We're winners. If you're not winning, you are losing."
• Did you see the not-so-subtle shot the Steelers took at former offensive coordinator Todd Haley early in the fourth quarter?
Facing a third-and-1 at the Cleveland 40, they lined up in a jumbo package and ran a quarterback sneak with Roethlisberger for two yards.
It was a play Haley just wouldn't run. And when asked about it, he would say he didn't do it because he didn't want somebody to get a cheap shot on Roethlisberger.
At least in partial defense of Haley, when he was hired, one of the things he was told was to keep Roethlisberger healthy.
• Was the Steelers' sloppy game at least in part because they had so many guys not play in the preseason?
That seems to be a bit of an argument. But not playing in the preseason didn't seem to affect T.J. Watt. All he did was record 11 tackles, four sacks and block a potential game-winning field goal.
But Roethlisberger certainly looked rusty at times. And he wasn't always on the same page with Brown, including on a second quarter deep ball where Roethlisberger threw the ball to the center of the field when Brown was angling for the sideline. The pass was intercepted by Demarious Randle.
Brown, you'll recall, didn't play a down in the preseason because of a quad injury. He did finish the game with nine receptions for 93 yards and a score.
• In Ward, the fourth pick in this year's draft, and Myles Garrett, the top pick last year, the Browns seem to have finally gotten something right with all of their top-10 picks.
Ward had two interceptions and three defended passes overall, while Garrett had six tackles, two sacks and two forced fumbles.
Ward gave up a TD catch to Brown, but was in good coverage on the play.
The Steelers had better get used to seeing those two guys.
• Watt wasn't the only linebacker to have a big game. Bud Dupree had five tackles, a sack, two hurries, two passes defensed and a forced fumble in one of his more impactful games.
Newcomer Jon Bostic had nine tackles and a sack, while Williams had a team-high 12 tackles.
"Yeah, but we didn't win the game," Dupree said.
• The save of the game goes to Pouncey, who had the tackle on linebacker Joe Schobert, who had recovered a fumble, at the Pittsburgh 12 with 36 seconds remaining in overtime.
The Browns were pushed back to the 24 because of a penalty and Watt blocked a game-winning field goal attempt.
That's why you play to the whistle.
• His fumble aside, and it was a big one, James Conner showed he could be a feature back. He had 31 carries in this game, one fewer than he had all of his rookie season a year ago.
"I expected it," Conner said. "Talking with Coach Randy (Fichtner) throughout the week, I knew that was his plan to feed me and have me out there most of the time."
Conner finished with 135 yards rushing -- a 4.4-yard average -- and five receptions for 57 yards.
• Ryan Switzer looks like a nice addition in the return game. He averaged 11.2 yards on five punt returns and 23 yards on his kickoff returns. More importantly, he showed nice decision making in choosing when to go for the return and when not to, along with displaying ball security in some less-than-ideal weather.
The thing I especially like about Switzer is that he runs up on his kicks like an outfielder setting up for a throw home. When he takes the ball, he's already moving. That's what the good ones do.
• The Steelers mixed and matched things in the secondary. We saw Mike Hilton, Terrell Edmunds and Morgan Burnett all see time at strong safety.
More importantly, we didn't see any of the missed tackles from Sean Davis at free safety that plagued him last season.
That's not to say the tackling overall was crisp by the Steelers -- or the Browns for that matter -- but some of that can be attributed to the weather.
• Finally, is this a loss? No. But I understand why the Steelers would look at it as one.
It's a division game and it's a game they led by 14 midway through the fourth quarter. You should win those.
But these aren't the same old Browns. They're better. And remember, the Steelers beat them here 21-18 in the opener last season and it took a blocked punt for a touchdown to help that happen.
It's not about how you're playing in September that matters. It's how you're playing in November and December.
September is all about keeping your head above water -- no pun intended.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Steelers at Browns, Cleveland, Sept. 9, 2018. - MATT SUNDAY / DKPS