PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania -- The Browns had their chances.

That is a sentence I feel like I have typed and deleted and retyped too many times to remember in 2019. The statement is true. They're in games. Well, most games. The problem is the scale between capitalized and failed with regard to those chances is severely tilted in the failed direction.

The story of this season was built into a microcosm Sunday against the Steelers. Opportunistic offense early on, lull in the middle of the effort with what appeared to be hazy focusing and scheming, and then a failed opportunity at the end.

The Browns went for 183 yards in the first half, yet only mustered 96 in the second half as the group only scored 13 points in their loss in Heinz Field.

The issues for this group seem to shuffle week to week, but today's issues boiled down to three failed areas.

Pass Protection

The Browns were without Greg Robinson, and that made the job that much harder against what is a dominant Pittsburgh front. The pressure comes from wide angles in this multiple front scheme and the Browns, with Justin McCray and Chris Hubbard at tackle, were ill-equipped to handle the consistent rush.

The Steelers had six tackles for loss, seven quarterback hits, and five sacks. They once again dominated the line of scrimmage and made Baker Mayfield feel rattled most of the day. It impacted the passing game and the Browns to handle any situation of third and long.

Miscommunication kills the comeback

When the Browns needed it most, a lack of communication ended the game's final drive before it could really get started.

The Steelers knew it was desperation time as came out in their dime package of six defensive backs, one linebacker, and four defensive lineman. Their goal was to confuse the Browns with deep coverage and they succeeded. Quarterbacks are taught to read the middle of the field when reading all vertical concepts and the inside receivers are taught the same reads.

If the middle of the field has closed coverage (odd number, like one safety) then the goal is to look off the safety and make the throw vertical up the hash. If the middle of the field is open, the teaching point is for the inside receiver, usually tagged so they know which one, will bend the route back inside to defeat the back end coverage in the void. The Steelers threw a wrinkle at the Browns vertical concept here.

The Steelers leaked their dime defender to the middle of the field well before the snap and rolled Minkah Fitzpatrick down to play "hole" coverage. Once Fitzpatrick rolled down, the dime defender is the middle coverage and he sits up the middle of the field -- meaning you get closed coverage here. Mayfield is clearly expecting Landry to stay upfield vertical and his throw trajectory shows us the clear miscommunication in direction.

Here's the full replay of the miss and interception by Joe Haden.

Mayfield wants to shield Landry from the middle of the field coverage defender but Landry thinks the look is middle open and bends his route. There was clearly some miscommunication here and Landry discussed it passionately with Ryan Lindley after the play.

Let's be clear: that was no clean, or normal, coverage look from Pittsburgh and with the odd deep coverage alignment it is easy to comprehend how Landry could end up confused. However, they can't be confused. They just can't. Not when it means this much.

The miscommunications keep happening. It has never quite felt like Mayfield and his core of receivers have consistently been on the same page in this system throughout 2019. Whether alignment, timing, route, it has never quite felt right throughout enough full games.

Balance lost when needed most

For the Browns offense, the first half felt successful. They ran it well for 92 yards on 18 attempts and had nice consistency with 92 passing yards on 19 attempts. The balance was there and it kept Pittsburgh in less favorable rush situations and vulnerable to some misdirection run schemes.

Nick Chubb had 43 rush yards on 10 attempts and Kareem Hunt had 43 on seven attempts. Even that split felt right and went into the consistency.

Then the second half came and went and the Browns rushed just six times for 15 yards. They were within one score for all but five total minutes of the 30 minute half. Yet they abandoned it altogether. They ran five times in the third quarter and just once in the fourth.

The opportunities weren't there each time the Browns touched it, but being within just one score meant they needed to run it more. At least the action of running helps this offense find easy yards, and they even left that concept. It was especially damning in the late fourth quarter following and interception by Terrance Mitchell that set the Browns up at the Steelers 30-yard line.

Three straight throws, two incomplete right away, and then a sack on a third and long meant the Browns earned nothing from a positive field situation at a major time of need. With two backs like Chubb and Hunt, this simply can't happen.

This is not a complaint at Freddie Kitchens about his inability to design or string together successful plays on occasion, but the Browns have to seek better balance when they have key opportunities. This offense just functions better with it, and against a defense as quality as that of Pittsburgh, that balance, and the deception within, is necessary not optional.

This was a failure for the Browns offense, and it might have cost them a shot at a game they needed to save their season.