Steelers look to wrap up AFC North and prevent Browns' pass rusher Garrett from setting sacks record

Pittsburgh (9-6) at Cleveland (3-12)

Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, CBS.

BetMGM NFL odds: Steelers by 3.

Against the spread: Steelers 8-6-1; Browns 6-9.

Series record: Steelers lead 83-64-1.

Last meeting: Steelers won 23-9 on Oct. 12 at Pittsburgh.

Last week: Steelers beat Lions 29-24; Browns lost to Bills 23-20.

Steelers offense: overall (27), rush (26), pass (21), scoring (11).

Steelers defense: overall (28), rush (15), pass (30), scoring (17).

Browns offense: overall (30), rush (28), pass (30), scoring (31)

Browns defense: overall (2), rush (14), pass (1), scoring (20)

Turnover differential: Steelers plus-9; Browns minus-6.

RB Kenny Gainwell. “Kenny G” is hitting all the right notes during Pittsburgh's three-game winning streak. The versatile five-year veteran is averaging nearly 100 yards from scrimmage during the Steelers' late-season surge. Gainwell's 62 receptions also lead the team, and they're not just checkdowns. Just look at his diving one-armed grab on a 45-yard touchdown late in the first half last week against Detroit as proof.

DE Myles Garrett. With 22 sacks, the All-Pro pass rusher needs one to pass the single-season record held by Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Strahan (2001 with the New York Giants) and Pittsburgh’s TJ Watt (2021). Garrett, who also leads the league with 32 tackles for a loss, has never sacked Aaron Rodgers in two meetings.

Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers vs. Garrett. Rodgers has been pressured on a league-low 21.9% of his drop-backs this season. He’s averages 2.63 seconds to throw, the fastest in the league. Garrett has not sacked Rodgers the two times he has faced him and has had only four quarterback pressures.

Steelers: LB T.J. Watt will miss a third straight game as he recovers from surgery to repair a partially collapsed lung. ... WR Calvin Austin III (groin) ,LG Isaac Seumalo (triceps), CB Brandin Echols (groin) and CB James Pierre (calf) have also been ruled out. ... LB Nick Herbig (hamstring) could return after missing the win over Detroit.

Browns: RB Quinshon Judkins (leg) was placed on injured reserve after undergoing surgery on Tuesday. ... TE Harold Fannin Jr. (groin) and QB Dillon Gabriel (shoulder) were injured in practice on Friday and are likely to be game-time decisions. ... TE David Njoku (knee) has not practiced this week and will miss his third straight game. ... CB Denzel Ward (calf) is expected to return to the lineup after missing the past two weeks. ... RB Dylan Sampson's (hand) status is uncertain.

The Steelers have dominated the Browns since Cleveland’s return to the NFL in 1999, but Pittsburgh has found the going a little rough on the road lately when playing its oldest rival. Cleveland has won 5 of 6 at Huntington Bank Field against Pittsburgh, including three straight. ... The Browns are 4-1 against the Steelers in December. Pittsburgh's last visit to Cleveland in December came in 2009, a 13-6 Browns victory. ... Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers is 4-0 all time against the Browns, throwing for 11 touchdowns without a pick.

Pittsburgh has won three straight to take control of the AFC North with two weeks to go. The Steelers can clinch their first AFC North title since 2020 this weekend with a win or a Ravens loss to Green Bay. ... Pittsburgh will have to do it without star receiver DK Metcalf, who has been suspended for the team's final two games following an in-game altercation with a fan in Detroit. ... Pittsburgh is 6-2 all time in division-clinching games under Mike Tomlin. ... Tomlin is one win shy of tying Hall of Famer Chuck Noll for the most regular-season victories in franchise history. Noll’s 193 regular-season wins rank ninth all time. Seven of the eight men ahead of Tomlin and Noll on the list are either in the Hall of Fame or will be (Andy Reid, Bill Belichick). ... Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers has bounced back strong after a dismal performance against Buffalo on Nov. 30. The 42-year-old has completed 73 of 102 passes for 774 yards with five touchdowns and no picks during Pittsburgh's three-game winning streak. ... Eleven different players have caught touchdown passes this season for the Steelers, tied with Tampa Bay for the most in the league. ... The Steelers are 52-15 when facing rookie quarterbacks since 1970, including a victory over Cleveland on Oct. 12 when Dillion Gabriel started for the Browns. Cleveland QB Shedeur Sanders will be the third different rookie to face Pittsburgh in the past five meetings between the longtime division rivals. ... The Steelers have been strong finishers over the past eight seasons. Pittsburgh's 17 wins across Week 17 and Week 18 during that span are tops in the NFL. ... The Steelers defense has dominated the third quarter in each of the past two weeks, holding Miami and Detroit to a combined minus-23 yards of offense. ... Cleveland is on pace to be led by rookies in pass attempts, rushing carries and receptions. The only other team to do that is the 1968 Buffalo Bills. ... QB Shedeur Sanders is 1-4 as the Browns' starting QB. He has six touchdown passes and eight interceptions on the season. ... Cleveland has allowed a league-high 45.3% QB pressure rate, the third-highest rate in a single season by any offense since Next Gen stats started tracking in 2018. ... RBs Raheim Sanders and Trayveon Williams combined for 105 scrimmage yards last week after Judkins' injury. ... WR Jerry Jeudy has at least five catches in his past three games against the Steelers. ... LB Carson Schwesinger leads NFL rookies in tackles (137) and tackles for loss (11). ... Cleveland's defense has generated pressure on 39% of pass drop-backs, the fifth-highest rate in the league.

Cleveland TE Harold Fannin Jr. is one of just three NFL players to play at least 45 snaps in the backfield, lined up at as slot receiver, out wide or at tight end. He has been targeted on 24.8% of his routes and has 367 yards after the catch. He has a TD catch in three of the past four games and had seven receptions for 81 yards in the first meeting against Pittsburgh.

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Pittsburgh Steelers' Aaron Rodgers reacts after Pittsburgh won an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

Chicago (11-4) at San Francisco (11-4)

Sunday, 8:15 p.m. EST, NBC.

BetMGM NFL Odds: 49ers by 3.

Against the spread: Bears 9-5-1; 49ers 10-5.

Series record: 49ers lead 36-33-1.

Last meeting: 49ers beat Bears 38-13 Dec. 8, 2025, in Santa Clara, Calif.

Last week: Bears beat the Packers 22-16 in OT; 49ers beat the Colts 48-27.

Bears offense: overall (5), rush (2), pass (14), scoring (10).

Bears defense: overall (24), rush (27), pass (18), scoring (19).

49ers offense: overall (9), rush (24), pass (5), scoring (9).

49ers defense: overall (18), rush (8), pass (23), scoring (11).

Turnover differential: Bears plus-21; 49ers minus-4.

DB Nahshon Wright forced a fumble last week and has 5 INTs, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles on the season. The only other player to hit those marks in the past 17 seasons was Minkah Fitzpatrick in 2019.

QB Brock Purdy became the first Niners QB to throw at least five TDs in a game last week since Steve Young did it in Super Bowl 29 a little more than 30 years ago. Purdy has thrown eight TD passes and only one INT the past two weeks and has multiple TD passes in five of his seven starts this season. Purdy leads the NFL with a 130 passer rating on third down this season.

Bears running game against 49ers defense. Chicago ranks second in the NFL in rushing and has had at least 138 yards in seven of the past eight games. The Niners rank third best in the NFL in allowing 87.4 yards per game since Week 11 and held Jonathan Taylor to 46 yards last week.

Bears: WR Luther Burden III (ankle) returned to practice after missing last week's game and will play this week. ... WR Rome Odunze (foot) remains sidelined. ... LB T.J. Edwards (glute), CB Nahshon Wright (hamstring) and CB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson are all questionable.

49ers: TE George Kittle (ankle) left last week's game with an ankle injury and is questionable this week. ... WR Ricky Pearsall (knee) also is listed as questionable after missing last week's game. ... CB Renardo Green (neck) will miss his second straight game.

The teams have alternated wins and losses in the past nine meetings. ... The Bears are 2-1 all time at Levi's Stadium. ... The 49ers are 3-2 against the Bears under coach Kyle Shanahan. ... This marks the first time these teams are playing in a season when both made the playoffs since 2001 when Chicago beat San Francisco 37-31 in Week 7.

The Bears clinched a playoff spot last week and can clinch their first division title since 2018 with either a win or a loss by Green Bay. ... Chicago's plus-21 turnover margin is the second best for any team through 15 games in the past 13 seasons, behind only the plus-23 for the 2019 Patriots. ... The previous time the Bears finished a season plus-21 or better came in 1985 when they were plus-23 on the way to winning the franchise's only Super Bowl title. ... Chicago is the first team in NFL history to win six games after trailing in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter. ... Bears TE Colston Loveland has at least three catches in 10 straight games for the fifth-longest streak by a rookie TE since the merger. ... Chicago QB Caleb Williams has nine TD passes and a 100.1 passer rating on third down. ... Pro Bowl DB Kevin Byard III leads the NFL with six INTs, the most by any Bears defender since 2018. ... The Bears haven't allowed an opening-drive score in seven straight games and have given an NFL-low 10 points on opening drives this season. San Francisco has five TDs and one FG on seven opening drives with Purdy at QB. ... The 49ers clinched their fourth playoff spot in the past five seasons last week and will earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC with wins in their final two games. ... San Francisco is 4-0 in prime-time games this season. ... The 48 points for the Niners last week were their most in a game since they also scored 48 against New Orleans on Dec. 8, 2019. ... San Francisco has gone back-to-back games without punting for the first time in franchise history. ... Christian McCaffrey's 92 catches this season are tied with Roger Craig in 1985 for the most by any running back in 49ers history. ... McCaffrey is second in the NFL with 1,888 yards from scrimmage and ranks third with 16 TDs. ... WR Jauan Jennings has at least one TD catch in four straight games, tied for the longest streak for a Niners player since Vernon Davis did it five games in a row in 2013. ... Jennings' seven TD catches since Week 9 are one off the NFL lead held by Davante Adams. ... Rookies Alfred Collins and C.J. West had their first career sacks last week, marking the first time San Francisco got sacks from two rookies in the same game since 2016. ... The 49ers rank second in the NFL converting 50% of third down opportunities.

Bears WR D.J. Moore is coming off a season-high 97 yards receiving last week, including the game-winning TD in overtime. He has three touchdown catches the past two games and five in the past five games and could be a good option with Chicago short-handed at receiver.

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San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) runs against Indianapolis Colts outside linebacker Zaire Franklin (44) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Chicago Bears' Caleb Williams gets away from Green Bay Packers' Lukas van Ness during the second half of an NFL football game Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Huh)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) passes against the Indianapolis Colts during the second half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)