The Cleveland Browns may have just ended a record 18-year playoff drought, but to advance further into the postseason, they will need to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers again without one of their key players on defense.

Defensive end Olivier Vernon, who was carted off in the fourth quarter of the game against the Steelers that the Browns eventually won, 24-22, has suffered an Achilles injury and will undergo surgery, according to head coach Kevin Stefanski, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

Vernon was carted off to the locker room early in the fourth quarter of the Steelers-Browns game, with Cleveland ahead, 24-16. The 30-year old was unable to put weight on his leg and was listed as questionable to return and later on underwent an MRI on his ankle, which confirmed a ruptured Achilles.

The University of Miami product is an important part of the Cleveland defense, tallying nine sacks in 13 starts, including one earlier in the game against Pittsburgh. Vernon, a Pro Bowler back in 2018, also recorded 36 combined tackles, 12 tackles for loss, and 16 quarterback hits this season.

Vernon was drafted in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins and played for the Dolphins and the New York Giants before being traded to the Browns in the summer of 2019 as part of the deal that sent star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to Cleveland.

Without their defensive end, the Browns will try to repeat over the Steelers when they face off in the Wild Card Round on Sunday in the team's first playoff game since 2002.