Browns prevent Steelers from clinching AFC North with 13-6 win over Pittsburgh

CLEVELAND (AP) — Shedeur Sanders threw for 186 yards and a touchdown, Cleveland's defense kept Pittsburgh out of the end zone and the Browns held on for a 13-6 victory on Sunday, preventing the Steelers from clinching the AFC North.

Pittsburgh (9-7) came into the weekend needing either a win or loss by Baltimore for its first division title since 2020.

Instead, the Steelers will host the Ravens to close the regular season the winner getting the division and the AFC's fourth seed in the playoffs.

The Browns (4-12) snapped a four-game losing streak, along with a seven-game skid in division games. It is the first time since Dec. 10, 2009, that the Browns defeated the Steelers and held them without a touchdown.

Cleveland scored on its first two possessions and jumped out to a 10-0 lead.

Sanders completed 17 of 23 passes, including a touchdown and two interceptions as he improved to 2-4 as an NFL starting quarterback.

Rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr. scored a touchdown for the third time in four games and Andre Szmyt had two field goals, including one from 33 yards that put the Browns up 13-6 with 1:40 remaining.

Pittsburgh got the ball at its 35 after a touchback. Rodgers got the Steelers to the Browns 11 in four plays, including completions of 29 and 11 yards to tight end Pat Freiermuth.

A 3-yard completion to Adam Thielen on first-and-10 got the Steelers to the Browns 7, but Rodgers was unable to connect with Marquez Valdes-Scantling on the next three plays. Denzel Ward blanketed Valdes-Scantling on a pass to the right corner of the end zone on fourth-and-7 with 17 seconds remaining as Pittsburgh turned it over on downs.

Myles Garrett was held without a sack for the first time in 10 games. He remains at 22 and needs one against Cincinnati next week to surpass Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt for the single-season NFL mark.

The Browns scored on their opening possession for the second straight game on Szmyt's 50-yard field goal.

After Pittsburgh went three-and-out, Cleveland got into the end zone on the ensuing series when Fannin caught a 28-yard TD pass from Sanders to make it 10-0. Fannin adjusted his route as the ball hung in the air. He caught it at the 1 before rolling into the end zone with 5:11 remaining in the first quarter.

Fannin aggravated his groin injury on the play and was ruled out for the rest of the game. Fannin originally suffered the injury during Friday's practice.

The Steelers closed within 10-6 at halftime on a pair of field goals by Chris Boswell. Pittsburgh appeared to go three-and-out on its second drive, but Cleveland's Rayshawn Jenkins was called for taunting.

Boswell connected from 44 yards early in the second quarter to put the Steelers on the board. He added a 40-yard field goal on the last play of the first half.

Boswell was short on a 54-yard attempt early in the fourth quarter after Alex Wright sacked Rodgers for a 5-yard loss at the Browns 36 on third-and-14.

Pittsburgh wasted a prime scoring chance with 2:46 remaining in the first half when it turned it over on downs at the Cleveland 22 when Rodgers wasn't able to connect with Scotty Miller on a pass to the end zone on fourth-and-1.

The Steelers drive started at the Browns 31 when rookie linebacker Jack Sawyer, who went to Ohio State, picked off Sanders' pass at the Pittsburgh 42 and returned it 27 yards into Cleveland territory.

Steelers: TE Darnell Washington (forearm) left in the second quarter.

Browns: Besides Fannin, G Wyatt Teller aggravated a calf injury in the first quarter. G Tevin Jenkins suffered a concussion during the fourth quarter.

Steelers: host Baltimore next weekend

Browns: at Cincinnati to finish the season.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) runs from Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Alex Highsmith (56) and defensive tackle Keeanu Benton (95) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) throws a pass around Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett reacts after a play during the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard)

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) reacts after a play during the second half of an NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard)

Cleveland Browns tight end Harold Fannin Jr. reacts after catching a touchdown pass in front of Pittsburgh Steelers safety Kyle Dugger (29) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Winter rain lashed the Gaza Strip over the weekend, flooding camps with ankle-deep puddles as Palestinians displaced by two years of war attempted to stay dry in tents frayed by months of use.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled for an expected meeting on Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida about the second phase of the ceasefire. The first phase that took effect on Oct. 10 was meant to bring a surge in humanitarian aid for Gaza, including shelter.

Netanyahu made no public statement as he departed.

In the southern city of Khan Younis, blankets were soaked and clay ovens meant for cooking were swamped. Children wearing flip-flops waded through puddles. Some people used shovels or tin cans to remove water from tents. Others clawed at the ground to pry collapsed shelters from the mud.

““Puddles formed, and there was a bad smell,” said Majdoleen Tarabein, displaced from Rafah in southern Gaza. ”The tent flew away. We don’t know what to do or where to go.”

She and family members tried to wring muddy blankets dry by hand.

“When we woke up in the morning, we found that the water had entered the tent,” said Eman Abu Riziq, also displaced in Khan Younis. “These are the mattresses. They are all completely soaked.”

She said her family is still reeling from her husband’s death less than two weeks ago.

“Where are the mediators? We don’t want food. We don’t want anything. We are exhausted. We just want mattresses and covers,” said Fatima Abu Omar as she tried to prop up a collapsing shelter.

At least 12 people, including a 2-week-old infant, have died since Dec. 13 from hypothermia or weather-related collapses of war-damaged homes, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, part of the Hamas-run government.

Emergency workers have warned people not to stay in damaged buildings, because they could collapse. But with much of the territory in rubble, there are few places to escape the rain. In July, the United Nations estimated that almost 80% of buildings in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged.

Since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas began, 414 people have been killed and 1,142 wounded in Gaza, according to the Health Ministry. The overall Palestinian death toll from the war is at least 71,266. The ministry, which does not distinguish between militants and civilians in its count, is staffed by medical professionals and maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by the international community.

The Israel-Hamas war began with the Hamas-led attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 that killed about 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage,

Humanitarian deliveries into Gaza are falling far short of the amount called for under the U.S.-brokered ceasefire, according to aid organizations and an Associated Press analysis of the Israeli military’s figures.

The Israeli military body in charge of humanitarian aid said in the past week that 4,200 trucks with aid entered Gaza, plus eight garbage trucks to assist with sanitation, as well as tents and winter clothing. It refused to elaborate on the number of tents. Aid groups have said the need far outstrips the number that have entered.

Since the ceasefire began, around 72,000 tents and 403,000 tarps have entered, according to Shelter Cluster, an international coalition of aid providers led by the Norwegian Refugee Council.

“People in Gaza are surviving in flimsy, waterlogged tents and among ruins," Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the top U.N. group overseeing aid in Gaza, wrote on social media. “There is nothing inevitable about this. Aid supplies are not being allowed in at the scale required.”

Though the ceasefire agreement has mostly held, its progress has slowed.

Israel has said it refuses to move to the next phase while the remains of the final hostage are still in Gaza. Hamas has said the destruction in Gaza has hampered efforts to find remains.

Challenges in the next phase include the deployment of an international stabilization force, a technocratic governing body for Gaza, the disarmament of the Hamas militant group and further Israeli troop withdrawals from the territory.

Both Israel and Hamas have accused each other of truce violations.

Sally Abou AlJoud reported from Beirut. Melanie Lidman contributed to this report from Tel Aviv, Israel.

A previous version of this story was corrected to say that the ceasefire came into effect on Oct. 10, not Oct. 11.

Find more of AP’s Israel-Hamas coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war.

Palestinians try to recover their tent after overnight rainfall flooded their beachside tent camp in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohammad Jahjouh)

Palestinian children carry sacks filled with firewood as they walk through a displacement camp in Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinian children carry plastic jerrycans filled with water as they walk through a displacement camp in Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians walk along a street lined with war-damaged buildings in the rain, in Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

A Palestinian child carries a bag of flour on his back at a makeshift camp on the beach, in Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

A temporary camp for displaced Palestinians on the beach, near the port of Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Members of the Al-Ajouri family stand by their tent that was destroyed by a strong wind and rain in Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians receive donated food at a temporary camp for displaced people, on the beach near the port of Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)