(My Sportsbook) - When the Cleveland Browns announced the signing of veteran quarterback Jeff Garcia in the offseason, it was thought that the offense had taken a huge step up from the bumbling and stumbling of Tim Couch and Kelly Holcomb.

Although everything looked good on paper, Garcia has never quite gotten comfortable in the offense and mediocrity has resulted. The Browns' inability to get the ball in the end zone continued in Sunday's 34-23 loss to Pittsburgh, as it took until the 6:16 point of the fourth quarter for them to register a touchdown.

The Browns' offense fell to 30th overall and 30th in passing. Cleveland dropped to 22nd in red-zone efficiency and last in the NFL in third-down conversions after its struggles. In the game, Garcia completed 16-of-34 passes for 210 yards and a touchdown, but averaged just 6.18 yards per completion. Pittsburgh sacked Garcia twice in the game and hurried him numerous other times.

"The offensive line at times did pick up the stunts and the blitzes," Browns coach Butch Davis said. "At times there were hot guys coming free. Then, it falls on the shoulders of potentially a running back who is involved in the protection. It could involve the receiver recognizing they're hot and looking for the ball immediately. It could be the quarterback."

There is plenty of blame to go around for the Browns' offense, which is averaging only 16.4 points per game (13th-AFC). The lone Cleveland touchdown Sunday came on a Garcia seven-yard touchdown strike to Andre Davis in the fourth stanza.

Garcia was the Browns' lone running threat in the game, rushing five times for 41 yards (8.2 ypc). Lee Suggs ran the ball 11 times for only 30 yards and William Green added 27 yards on three attempts. With undefined roles, Suggs and Green seem off-balance.

Meanwhile, the defense couldn't get it done against rookie Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Cleveland blitzed the youngster only four times, as the Steelers kept extra blockers in to protect him.

"You look at it and evaluate the success that other people have had," Davis said. "They are a team that leaves a lot of guys in to block with multiple tight ends and two-back offenses. We felt that with their four-wide receiver sets it was going to put us into a lot of one-on-one situations and that is something that we did not want to do."

The zone defense didn't do all that well, as Pittsburgh registered 231 yards through the air. Cornerback Chris Crocker made the only big play for the Cleveland defense in the game, picking off Roethlisberger and returning the ball 20 yards for a score in the first stanza.

Pittsburgh basically had its way with the Browns on the ground, rushing 43 times for 170 yards (4.0 ypc) and three touchdowns. Duce Staley tallied 117 yards on 21 attempts (5.6 ypc) and a score. The Browns must step up their run defense against Rudi Johnson and the Cincinnati Bengals this week.

INJURY REPORT -- Offensive tackle Ryan Tucker and defensive tackle Gerard Warren both have been cleared to practice on Wednesday and could play Sunday. Defensive tackles Chad Beasley (ankle) and Courtney Brown (foot/ankle), linebackers Brant Boyer (broken foot) and Ben Taylor (pectoral surgery) and RB Ben Miller (ankle) are out for the year.

UP NEXT -- The Browns take on the arch-rival Cincinnati Bengals at home this Sunday.