Steelers Now
Cleveland Browns cornerback Denzel Ward was surprised the Pittsburgh Steelers targeted him at the end of the game.
The Cleveland Browns upset the Pittsburgh Steelers 13-6 in Week 17, and it was largely due to some questionable play calling at the end of the game.
Trailing by a touchdown with just 29 seconds left in the game, Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers targeted wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on three straight plays, all of which he was being covered by Browns five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward.
Ward, who forced an incompletion on each attempt and secured the win for Cleveland, was baffled by Pittsburgh’s decision to target him on three straight plays.
“I’m always just prepared and ready for moments like that. I just try to make it hard on teams each time they decide to look at the scouting report and see who they’re going to attack, and make it hard on them when they come my way,” Ward said, via Ashley Bastock of clevelanddotcom. “I don’t know whose bright idea it was to try me for the game on three plays in a row, but we was able to come through and get the win.”
#Browns Denzel Ward: “I don’t know whose bright idea it was to try me for the game on three plays in a row.” pic.twitter.com/IcGMpaRuol
— Ashley Bastock (@AshleyBastock42) December 28, 2025
Ward, 28, has been arguably the Browns’ best defender outside of defensive end Myles Garrett since entering the league as the No. 4 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
In his eight NFL seasons, Ward has recorded 360 tackles, 0.5 sack, four forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries, 103 passes defensed, 18 interceptions and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, it was certainly a head-scratching decision by the Steelers to go in Valdes-Scantling’s direction on three straight plays with the game on the line. He entered the game with just two catches for 25 yards.
Pittsburgh was shorthanded at wide receiver with DK Metcalf serving the first week of his two-game suspension and Calvin Austin III sidelined by injury. However, the team had several other options, like tight end Pat Freiermuth, who caught two passes for 40 yards on the final drive.
Nonetheless, the Steelers have now fallen to 9-7 and their Week 18 meeting with the Baltimore Ravens will decide who will win the AFC North and go home on the doorstep of the postseason.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Browns Denzel Ward Blasts Steelers For Targeting Him: ‘Don’t Know Whose Bright Idea It Was’
