Steelers forget rules during safety punt vs. Browns

Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Pittsburgh Steelers players appeared to forget the rules regarding a free kick after a safety during their win against the Cleveland Browns.

Luckily for Pittsburgh, it still left Heinz Field on Sunday with a 33-18 victory. The brutal sequence occurred with 8:13 remaining in the third quarter.

Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield faced a 2nd and 9 from the Browns' 5-yard-line. He took the snap and threw to running back Nick Chubb for a one-yard gain. The Browns committed a holding penalty on the play, resulting in a safety.

The Browns then punted the ensuing free kick back to the Steelers. The ball floated to the 35-yard-line, while Steelers players let it fly over their heads and let it bounce on the field. Browns players recovered the ball on the Steelers' 24-yard-line.

"We screwed it up," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told reporters.

Pittsburgh committed a roughing the passer penalty on the first play of the next drive. The Browns later got the ball into the end zone on a one-yard pass from Mayfield to Antonio Callaway. Cleveland missed the extra point to make the score 16-12.

The Steelers added on 10 more points in the quarter to take a 26-12 lead down the stretch. James Conner added six more points with a 22-yard rushing score in the fourth quarter before Mayfield threw the final score of the game with 13 seconds remaining.

Pittsburgh has another AFC North matchup on the schedule next as it faces the Ravens at 1 p.m. on Nov. 4 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.