By Tom Withers
The Associated Press

CLEVELAND - Reminded of his prediction two weeks ago that a losing record might be good enough to win the AFC North, Browns safety Earl Little didn't waver. However, he did modify his forecast a tad.

"Yep. I'd say 7-9, 8-8 or 9-7," Little said. "Just look at it."

Uh, do we really have to?

The lone division in the NFL without a team above .500 - co-leaders Baltimore and Cincinnati are 5-5 - the AFC North will be won by whichever team can excel over the regular season's final six weeks.

The Browns (4-6) and Steelers (3-7) both enter Sunday's game hoping it's them.

"With this division, we're still in it," said Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher, whose team had a short week of preparation after playing at San Francisco on Monday night. "It's a long shot and it's an uphill battle. But we still have a legitimate opportunity. There's no margin for error. We have to find a way to win this game."

For starters, Pittsburgh will need to stop Browns quarterback Kelly Holcomb, who passed for a career-high 429 yards the last time he faced the Steelers.

Holcomb, who delivered that performance in last season's opening-round playoff loss, had to sit out Cleveland's 33-13 win at Pittsburgh on Oct. 5 with a broken right leg and torn ligaments in his left ankle.

But backup Tim Couch made the Steelers look just as bad, completing 20-of-25 passes for two touchdowns and running for another score. Now healthy, it's Holcomb's turn - again.

"I'm looking forward to it," said Holcomb, coming off a three-TD, 392-yard performance in last week's 44-6 rout of Arizona. "We need to do what we did last time when we played them - just stay poised, handle what they give us and we'll be OK."

Fortunately for them, OK may be good enough this season to win the AFC North and secure a home playoff game.

With tough upcoming road games at Seattle, Denver and Cincinnati (the season finale), the Browns need to win at home, something they haven't done consistently since returning to the league in 1999.

The Browns haven't won consecutive home games since 2001, and haven't won at home in back-to-back weeks since 1993.

Holcomb, though, has sensed a recent change in the Browns, who went 5-2 down the stretch last season to make the playoffs.

Their focus seems to be sharper, perhaps as a result of the recent release of wide receiver Kevin Johnson and the NFL's suspension of leading rusher William Green.

"It seems like everybody is ready to go," said Holcomb, who spread the ball to eight different receivers last week. "Everybody is excited and up for it. We're just looking forward to going out and getting two wins in a row at home. Doing it against the Steelers would be a big plus."

Pittsburgh, which has dropped six of seven, is certainly prime for a drubbing after the air miles the Steelers racked up this week.

On Monday night, they were beaten 30-14 by the 49ers before catching the redeye home.

"It's tough," wide receiver Hines Ward said. "We didn't get back to Pittsburgh until about 7:30 a.m and a lot of guys were banged up. We drove straight from the plane back to the facility, got treatment and a lot of guys didn't get home until about 2 p.m."

Maybe because of sleep deprivation, Cowher was in a grumpy mood for much of the week. He's still mad about the Steelers being the only team this season that had to travel again the weekend after playing a Monday night road game.

"I don't think it's right, but that's what we're doing," he said. "It's the hand that we were dealt and we're playing it out."

Winning out may be the only way the Steelers, whose record after 10 games hasn't been this poor since 1988, can get back to the playoffs. That, or hope everyone else loses.

Each team in the AFC North has three division games remaining, with the Ravens and Browns getting two of those at home.

If Pittsburgh can win its last six in a row, a 9-7 record would likely be enough for a playoff berth. But a loss on Sunday to their bitter rivals, could end the Steelers' hopes.

"It's going to be somewhat of a mini-Super Bowl," safety Mike Logan said. "Look at our record. Our backs are against the wall. It's not just talk. It's the reality of it."

According to Little, the Steelers are facing impossible odds if they lose.

"At 3-8, I don't think you make the playoffs," he said. "If they go 3-8 the season is pretty much over with. If they do lose, they got to get ready for next year."

Return to Bengals front page...