Watch the divisional round of the NFL playoffs live on Sky Sports NFL this weekend, with the first of two double-headers getting underway on Saturday night from 9pm; listen to the latest Inside The Huddle podcast in the player below...
Friday 15 January 2021 13:04, UK
Around The NFL's resident Cleveland Browns fan Marc Sessler joined Inside The Huddle this week to react to their win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, calling it a 'special experience'.
The Browns hammered the Steelers 48-37 on Super Wild Card Weekend to secure their first win in the postseason since 1994 and first in Pittsburgh since 2003.
"It felt so wonderful for anyone rooting for that team," Sessler said on the latest Inside The Huddle podcast - which you can listen to in the player above.
"And I would extend that to the likes Bernie Kosar, Eric Metcalf, and Earnest Byner - guys who had waited so long for the team they were attached to as players to succeed again.
"For me, what feels so special and different about it is, when you want what Andrew Berry the general manager and Kevin Stefanski the head coach are doing.
"I'd be a little suspicious if it seemed like a flash in the pan or a one year thing but I think their goal all along has been to build something - and to get there this quick, after last year's chaos, is encouraging.
"And look at the teams in their own division, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens have shown that to survive in the AFC North you want longevity for extended success.
"It's weird that this is all happening in the middle of a pandemic too, with one of the great NFL fan bases not able to be there in full force, but it has been a special experience for Cleveland in general."
Cleveland raced out into a 28-0 lead in the first quarter of their shock win over the Steelers, which included two rushing touchdowns by Kareem Hunt - the first of which was a symbolic score, according to Sessler.
"I thought Kareem Hunt's touchdown was symbolic of what Cleveland is," he added. "They're an offensive line - that's their strength and it has been that way all year long - and Hunt, in this game, kind of set the tone.
"Look at his power, his total will and desire on that play to overturn a really rugged Steelers defence which has dominated this team and other versions of this team for so long.
"Hunt's run was representative of a real gutsy performance."
Also discussed on the latest Inside The Huddle, Sessler and Sky Sports NFL expert Jeff Reinebold took a closer look at the rumours circling out of Houston that Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson could be looking to engineer a trade - with player power in sport more prevalent than ever before.
And, with the news this week of Doug Pederson's firing as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, former NFL offensive lineman Brian Baldinger and Sessler discussed the reasons behind the move, including a potential disagreement with ownership over the direction of the franchise and quarterback Carson Wentz.
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