Browns, Steelers Botch Final 10 Seconds After 35-Yard Touchback Rule Change
Updated
Updated · NBC Sports · Oct 2
Browns, Steelers Botch Final 10 Seconds After 35-Yard Touchback Rule Change
3 articles · Updated · NBC Sports · Oct 2
Summary
10 seconds remained after Cleveland’s go-ahead field goal, but the Browns kicked a touchback, handing Pittsburgh the ball at its own 35 instead of draining more clock or forcing a return.
That decision mattered because the 2025 rule change moved touchbacks from the 30 to the 35, making a short completion and timeout a realistic path to a tying field goal.
Pittsburgh then wasted the opening: Aaron Rodgers rolled right hunting a deep shot rather than a quick 20- to 30-yard gain, and his pass was intercepted near the Cleveland 20.
The sequence echoed Sunday’s Ravens-Cowboys finish, where Baltimore used seven seconds and a 27-yard gain to set up a walk-off kick after Dallas made the same touchback mistake.
Together, the plays showed both teams still misreading how the new kickoff geometry reshapes end-of-game strategy in the final 10 to 15 seconds.