Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers wasn't happy with the refs after losing to the Cleveland Browns.

With the game and maybe the whole 2025 season hanging in the balance, Rodgers kept throwing to WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling (MVS) at the end. Down by seven with less than 30 seconds left in Week 17, he targeted MVS three times from inside the 10-yard line.

All three passes failed.

The first two weren't close; MVS might have run the wrong routes. Twice.

After the game, Rodgers didn't call out MVS for the possible screw-ups. He did, though, talk about the ref's call (or lack of one) on the fourth-down throw to MVS.

That was interference, for sure, Rodgers said. I'll have to watch the film from the second and third down, though.

On the fourth-down play, Rodgers aimed for MVS in the end zone corner. Photos show Browns CB Denzel Ward holding MVS's left arm.

The Steelers messed up, but MVS couldn't move his left arm on that last throw. Should've been a flag.

Watching it live, Ward's armbar didn't look that bad. The refs didn't call anything, and the Browns took over.

The Browns won, 13-6. The Steelers are now 9-7.

They have to beat the Baltimore Ravens in Week 18 to win the AFC North. A tie works, too.

If the Ravens win, the Steelers are out of the playoffs.

Steelers and Rodgers Can't Get Game-Tying TD Against Browns

The Steelers offence had a bad day. Before Week 17, Rodgers and the crew had scored at least 27 points in three games straight.

Against the NFL's top pass defence in Cleveland, the Steelers didn't score a TD. The Browns limited Rodgers to 168 passing yards (4.3 yards per pass).

The Steelers only made three of 15 third-down attempts and got zero points on two trips to the red zone.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said the Browns' defence was good, and Rodgers agreed. But in the second half, when Pittsburgh didn't score, they were missing DK Metcalf (suspended), Calvin Austin III (hamstring), and Darnell Washington (broken arm). Washington played only one snap.

That's why Valdes-Scantling got nine targets, catching just three for 21 yards.

WR Scotty Miller and TE Pat Freiermuth had 55 receiving yards together to start the Steelers' last drive. On first-and-goal from the Browns' 10, Rodgers hit Adam Thielen for 3 yards.

On social media, fans and experts questioned Rodgers' throwing to Valdes-Scantling three times, since Freiermuth and Miller made the big plays to get there in the first place.

How Metcalf's Suspension Impacted the Steelers

The Steelers usually run a lot and involve tight ends more than other teams. Some thought Metcalf's absence wouldn't matter much against Cleveland.

But it did. The Browns played man-to-man, giving Rodgers chances to throw deep into single coverage. But MVS and the other backup receivers didn't make those catches.

Some thought Roman Wilson, who hasn't played for weeks, might have a good game. But he didn't get any targets.

The Steelers get another shot at winning the division in Week 18, but will still be without Metcalf.

Metcalf had his best game against Baltimore in Week 14.

Austin's and Washington's status is unclear. Hamstring injuries tend to stick around. If Washington can play, he'll likely have a cast, limiting his receiving.

That's why the missed interference call on the fourth-down play with Valdes-Scantling was so important.

The Steelers have gotten lucky with calls in the past, like against the Ravens and Lions. Given the Steelers-Ravens history, Rodgers might need some more luck to win next week.

Better receiver play would help, too.

After winning his third-round match at the World Darts Championship, Luke Littler made a joke about Stephen Bunting but apologized right away.

Littler is still in the running to be the first player in ten years to defend his World Championship title. He made it to the fourth round on Saturday night by beating Mensur Suljovic 4-0.

He had his best-ever average at Alexandra Palace and hit doubles 71% of the time—stats that probably worried the other players.

Just before Littler played at Ally Pally, another top player was knocked out of the tournament.

Stephen Bunting, a fan favorite and fourth seed, lost to James Hurrell in a surprising early defeat.

When asked about the Littler effect, the teenager couldn't resist a little jab.

The Luke Littler effect is still going strong. I don’t think the Bunting effect is going too well this tournament, Littler said at the press conference after his match. So yeah, maybe I’ve got the biggest fan base. I had to say that, sorry!

Littler knew he was ready to play well in his third-round match after practicing backstage at Ally Pally.

Littler told talkSPORT: “I felt very good, even while practicing. Before my match, I did a few interviews, but my first 9 or 12 darts were all perfect. 140, 140, 180, 180. Then I told my family, "I'm ready," and then I lost the bull. But all night, I just couldn't miss. Usually when that happens, you don't play as well on stage. But I just told myself to try to get into a rhythm with Mensur, and that's what I did. I didn't throw as fast tonight.”

Everyone's talking about whether Littler can be the first person since Gary Anderson in 2016 to win back-to-back titles at the Worlds.

“I didn't play my best in the first two rounds, but I got through them and came back after Christmas. After Christmas, we pack enough clothes for a week, because if we go to the final, we go to the final. We also book a house for a week. I hit a lot more 180s tonight—not many in Rounds One and Two. But the performance is there, and I know I can do it again.”

No one has hit a nine-darter at the World Championships this year, and Littler really wants to do it.

“I must have gone back-to-back like seven or eight times or something like that and not to go on stage and do it. It's a bit annoying because you know you can go back-to-back and have a shot at it. But we'll see what happens next round.”

Littler will play the winner of Damon Heta and Rob Cross in the last-16.