The question came in different forms after the Steelers opened the season by bopping the Browns in Cleveland, 34-7.

"Are the Steelers that good, or are the Browns that bad?"

Since that day, they have been equals, each winning five and losing two, which is why the game Sunday at Heinz Field looms large for both. The Steelers are 6-2, and anyone who thought the Browns would be 5-3 and one game behind them in the AFC North after watching the opener, please come up and claim your prize.

"A lot of people picked them to be last in our division," Hines Ward said yesterday. "They did a phenomenal job of staying together and not really listening to what people outside of that organization was talking about. They're 5-3 and playing good football right now.

"They're going to be licking their chops. They're playing for first place; if they beat us, it's a two-way tie between us and them."

The Browns have the fourth-ranked offense in the NFL in yards and points and are on pace to set franchise highs in both. That's not bad for a franchise that stormed through the NFL in the 1950s under coach Paul Brown and with Otto Graham at quarterback, or even their later playoff seasons under quarterbacks Brian Sipe and Bernie Kosar.

This offense, under first-year coordinator Rob Chudzinski, has Derek Anderson as its quarterback. He was Baltimore's sixth-round draft choice in 2005. The Ravens cut him that September, and the Browns claimed him.

Still, Cleveland drafted Brady Quinn in the first round this year, and holdover Charlie Frye won the starting job again in camp after an open competition.

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Sunday

• Game: Browns (5-3) vs. Steelers (6-2), 1 p.m.
• Where: Heinz Field.
• TV: KDKA.

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"There was not a guy going to be our starter," Browns receiver Braylon Edwards said yesterday. "We had D.A. one game, Charlie one game. We're flipping quarters another game to see who would be the quarterback. There was talk about Brady Quinn."

Two days after Frye played so poorly in the opener against the Steelers, general manager Phil Savage traded him to Seattle, and coach Romeo Crennel installed Anderson as his starter.

The Browns went out and scored 51 points in a victory against Cincinnati that weekend, and their offense has been humming ever since. Anderson has 17 touchdown passes -- nine to Edwards -- and a 91.7 passer rating.

"When we traded Charlie Frye away, we picked a definite quarterback," Edwards said. "We announced D.A. as our guy, he became the guy we put our faith in and we moved forward from there."

Anderson may be a big reason for Cleveland's turnaround as they come to Heinz Field to challenge for first place in the division, but he is not the only reason.

Cleveland's offensive line has grown into a good unit, including rookie left tackle Joe Thomas, picked by Pro Football Weekly to its half-season All-Pro team this week. Thomas has not allowed a sack since the opener. Also, center Hank Fraley, who played for Robert Morris and originally signed with the Steelers, is playing almost as good as his heyday with the Eagles, who traded him to Cleveland.

"They definitely are playing better," Steelers defensive end Aaron Smith said. "The rookie doesn't look like a rookie anymore. He has eight games under his belt and he's playing very well."

Edwards and tight end Kellen Winslow have become a difficult duo to cover. Each has 42 receptions with Edwards averaging 17.5 yards a catch and Winslow 15.6. Jamal Lewis has 480 yards rushing, a 4.2-yard average and six touchdown runs.

It looks like a new offense compared to the one that managed only 221 yards against the Steelers when the Browns also lost five turnovers.

"A lot of their improvement has come because of their quarterback change," Ben Roethlisberger said. "Not to say anything against Charlie Frye, but Derek Anderson has done a great job. He's got them believing in what he's doing, he's making plays for them, and the offense is doing some pretty good things."

On the other hand, Cleveland's defense ranks last in the NFL. The Browns have allowed fewer than 30 points only three times this season, against offensive jugger-nots Oakland, Baltimore and St. Louis.

One thing the Cleveland defense has done is make some big stops at the end of games to save them, particularly in their past two games -- at St. Louis and in overtime against Seattle. They did not allow a touchdown in the second half of either game.

Somehow, the Browns have overcome their poor play on defense to arrive in Heinz Field on the doorstep to first place in the AFC North. It's a stunning turnaround for a team that won a total of 19 games in the previous four seasons -- or the number many think the Patriots will win in this season alone.

No one in Cleveland is writing or saying that Bill Cowher will coach the Browns next season, as they did early in September.

"We haven't played all that great at times, and the games have been close games, and we've been a little lucky, but we'll take it," Crennel said. "That is why we are where we are right now."