Steelers Have Overlooked Revenge Game Against Browns

Potential Revenge Game?

Thornhill spent each of the past two seasons with the Browns before joining the Steelers on a one-year deal as a free agent back in March, and while he's not putting a ton of stock into the revenge game narrative, he did admit that he's looking forward to facing his old team and may even engage in some banter while on the field.

"I don't need any motivation," Thornhill said, per video from Steelers Now's Alan Saunders. "I can motivate myself. Like I said, I don't care who we play. You know, if you get to talking a little bit I like to talk, and I'm not the one that's gonna start it, but if they want to start talking, I'm down for that. I'm down for all that smoke, but it's gonna be fun. I can't wait for it."

The 29-year-old has gained closure on his tenure in Cleveland and also stated that he isn't harping on the past while choosing to take the high road ahead of his first matchup against his former employer.

"I've moved on from that," Thornhill said, per the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Chris Adamski. "I know a lot of people want me to fall into the trap, talking a lot of trash, but I'm not really doing that. I'm just trying to let my play on the field do all the talking. I'm not trying to do the talking in the media and things like that. I'm over Cleveland and I'm moving on and moving forward, not really looking back on the past."

Thornhill's Impact vs. Cleveland

Thornhill played a combined 137 snaps over the Steelers' first two games after DeShon Elliott went down with a knee injury in the first half of the Week 1 season opener against the New York Jets.

Jabrill Peppers cut into his playing time significantly in Week 3 vs. the New England Patriots, resulting in Thornhill logging just 29 defensive reps that game, but he returned to a featured role in Week 4 against the Minnesota Vikings with 50 snaps at safety next to Elliott in his return while Peppers only appeared on special teams, per Pro Football Focus.

It's safe to assume that Thornhill will continue to see the field at a high rate against the Browns given the defense's success in Week 4 combined with his knowledge of Cleveland's offense, which he practiced against on a daily basis for two years.

Though the unit looks quite different than when he was there, with rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel now leading the way, Thornhill will certainly still have some valuable insight heading into the contest.

It seems as though players always come up big against their former teams, and perhaps Thornhill can make a splash play or two in a rivalry game in front of a raucous crowd at Acrisure Stadium while helping the Steelers gain further ground in the AFC North.