CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns on Sunday beat Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for only the second time in 20 tries, and they beat him decisively.

Running back Ben Tate rushed for two touchdowns and Isaiah Crowell rushed for one to carry the Browns to a crushing 31-10 defeat of the Steelers at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Roethlisberger carried an 18-1 record against the Browns into the game. In typical Roethlisberger fashion, he led the Steelers to a game-winning field goal against Cleveland on the final play of the season opener in Pittsburgh. On Sunday, though, Roethlisberger was held to 21-of-42 passing for 228 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He was sacked twice.

“They’re a good football team,” Roethlisberger said. “I didn’t play well enough. Our record says we’re an average team. It’s still early, but we need to get some things fixed.”

The Browns are 3-2 while the Steelers dropped to 3-3.

The victory was costly for the Browns. Center Alex Mack left with what is reported to be a broken left ankle and might be lost for the season. Right guard John Greco moved to center and Paul McQuistan came off the bench to play right guard.

“I was amazed on how well we were able to put Paul in there and move John over and just continue to do the things we were doing before,” Browns All-Pro tackle Joe Thomas said. “We barely get any snaps like that. Alex is one of the most reliable guys in the NFL.”

Quarterback Brian Hoyer completed only five of 11 passes in the first half, but he threw for 146 yards in building a 21-3 halftime lead. It was the antithesis of the way the first half unfolded in Pittsburgh in the opener when the Steelers led 27-3 at halftime. Hoyer threw only 17 passes all game. He completed eight for 217 yards and a touchdown.

“What’s great about these guys is we don’t care who gets the credit,” Hoyer said. “We just want to win the game. I think good teams find different ways to win games.”

Three different players scored for the Browns in the second quarter. Crowell ran around right tackle to the front corner from the 5, Hoyer hooked up with tight end Jordan Cameron on a 51-yard scoring play for a 14-3 lead and Tate scored on an 8-yard run, all after the Steelers scored the only points of the first quarter on a 20-yard field goal by Shaun Suisham. Tate added a 1-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

What the Browns said:

“It was a long time coming. For us to finally put a whole game together, it was great.” — CB Joe Haden on the Browns’ defensive performance.

What the Steelers said:

“No excuses. Every man has to find a better way to execute. We need better detail on our assignments.” — WR Antonio Brown.

What we learned about the Browns:

1. Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan has transformed the Browns into a running team. They carried the ball 38 times for 158 yards and three touchdowns against the Steelers. The Browns had only four rushing touchdowns all of 2013, but they have eight rushing TDs this season.

2. It took five games for him to hit his stride, but tight end Jordan Cameron is back. He had nine catches for 205 yards through the first four games. He got nearly half that yardage — 102 yards — on three catches against the Steelers. His 51-yard TD reception expanded the lead to 14-3. Cameron caught 80 passes for 917 yards and seven touchdowns last year.

–RB Ben Tate, in his second game back as a starter from a knee injury, rushed 78 yards on 25 carries. The 3.1-yard average wasn’t memorable, but the fact he ran eight more times than Brian Hoyer passed the ball reflects how dominant the run offense was.

–C Alex Mack, the Browns first-round pick in 2009, never missed a game or a snap until he suffered a broken ankle in the second quarter. His streak lasted 5,279 plays. John Greco replaced him and is projected as the starter for the rest of the season.

–QB Brian Hoyer improved to 6-2 as a starter. He is 4-1 as a starter in home games over two seasons. He posted a 113.0 passer rating in his first victory over the Steelers. Ironically, he was a backup quarterback for Pittsburgh when the Browns last beat the Steelers two years ago.

What we learned about the Steelers:

1. The Steelers still haven’t been able to put back-to-back wins together this season. Six games into 2014 the pattern is win, lose, win, lose, win, lose. The good news might be they have already played half their road games, but one of their losses was at home to Tampa Bay.

2. Individual success by wide receiver Antonio Brown does not guarantee team success for the Steelers. He caught seven passes for 118 yards, which means he had at least five receptions in each game this season, but all the Steelers have to show for it is a .500 record.

–RB Le’Veon Bell rushed for 82 yards on 18 carries. His longest carry was 12 yards. Normally those numbers would be satisfying, but Bell rushed for 109 yards vs. the Browns in the opener, including a 38-yard touchdown run.

–P Brad Wing did his part — at least as a punter. He booted the ball seven times for a 46.0 average and a 42.1 net, but his botched hold on a field goal try in the second quarter turned the game in favor of the Browns.

–PR Antonio Brown was held to nine yards on two returns. It was a sharp decline from his performance in the opener vs. the Browns when he returned three punts 46 yards. His 36-yard return in the opener set up Le’Veon Bell’s 38-yard touchdown run for a 24-3 Pittsburgh lead.