You just knew it wouldn’t be easy for the Steelers when they took on the Browns in a Week 12 matchup at Huntington Bank Field on Thursday Night Football.

Cleveland may have been 2-8 and Pittsburgh may have been 8-2, but the home team–the little brother in this interstate rivalry–still had too much talent and incentive to roll over and play dead for three hours.

The Browns may have felt like running into the doghouse early if Pittsburgh, along with the cold and impending snowstorm, had given them a reason to. Actually, most dogs love to play in the snow, so it was up to the Steelers to give the dog pound a reason to submit.

The Steelers never did.

Instead, Pittsburgh kept playing a game of fetch with the Browns.

First, it was a missed field goal by Chris Boswell on the game’s first possession. Sure, it was from 58 yards out, but why not punt it there? Try to pin those dogs deep inside their own territory. Tire them out in this game of fetch.

Next, there was the failure to pick up a yard on fourth and one from their own 46 on the Steelers’ second offensive possession. True, Pittsburgh’s defense forced a quick three-and-out, but the message the home team was sending was quite clear: We might be having a dog of a season, but we’re not going to be your lap dogs tonight.

Maybe that’s why the Browns answered a 48-yard field goal from Boswell early in the second quarter with a 12-play drive that ended with a two-yard touchdown by running back Nick Chubb.

Perhaps that’s why Myles Garrett stripped quarterback Russell Wilson of the football two plays later. No, the Browns couldn’t parlay this takeaway into a two-score game, but they did add three points to take a 10-3 lead into halftime.

A seven-point halftime deficit may not seem so bad on most days, but on a cold, sloppy Thursday night in Cleveland?

Yuck.

The Browns may have momentarily returned to form when receiver Cedric Tillman fumbled after a 31-yard strike from Jameis Winston on the first possession of the second half, but Pittsburgh countered with another turnover on downs when running back Jaylen Warren was stuffed up the middle on fourth and one from his own 46.

The Steelers had a chance to finally tire the dogs out when Cleveland decided to go for it on fourth and goal from the two early in the fourth period. Leading by four at that point, it may have made more sense for the home team to try a field goal and extend the advantage to seven. After all, Pittsburgh’s offense hadn’t found paydirt since the 2:22 mark of the fourth quarter in the game against the Commanders on November 10. But what did the Browns have to lose but another game, right? So, they went for it, and Winston took it home himself. A successful two-point try followed to make it 18-6.

Yikes.

But the Steelers finally decided to use more stern commands with these dogs. They subsequently drove 69 yards and closed the gap to five points on a three-yard touchdown by Warren midway through the fourth quarter.

Nick Herbig then rode in on his snow plow to strip Winston of the football and clear a path to victory.

The Steelers took the lead when Wilson found receiver Calvin Austin for a 23-yard touchdown to make it 19-18 with 6:15 left in regulation.

Winston was then intercepted by Donte Jackson with 4:22 remaining. This game of fetch was over, right? The Steelers were going to tell these dogs to sit, no?

No. I mean, they may have commanded them to, but poorly trained dogs rarely do what you want. This is especially the case when the trainer goes three-and-out and follows that up with a 15-yard punt.

The Browns navigated 45 yards through the cold and snow and took a five-point lead on a two-yard touchdown by Chubb with 57 seconds left.

That felt like it was it, right? I mean, the Steelers tried their best to tire these dogs out, and they just wouldn’t lie down.

Wilson did put Pittsburgh in position for a Hail Mary as time ran out, but it wasn’t even close.

That loss kinda sucked.

Sure, the Steelers are 8-3 and remain in first place in the AFC North. Their chances of making the playoffs are still so healthy that it may be the biggest collapse in franchise history if they don’t. But what about that division title? What about a top-three seed? They’ve got the Bengals on the road followed by Cleveland at home followed by their biggest test of the season–three games in 10 days vs. three bona fide Super Bowl contenders.

Let’s hope Thursday night’s loss was just the typical bump in the road against an inspired division rival on a short week.

Let’s hope the Steelers can quickly rebound and ease the angst their fans may feel during the 10-day break before the next game.

Because if it all falls apart, we may look back at that sloppy loss in Cleveland as the night things started to snowball downhill.