PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t dead yet. Despite another slow start, the Steelers rallied to defeat the Titans while staying alive in the AFC playoff race. The 19-13 win put the Steelers back over .500 at 7-6-1. The Titans fell to 9-5 and are now just one game ahead of the Colts for first place in the AFC South, though they do hold the tiebreaker after beating Indy twice.
Down 13-3 at halftime, the Steelers scored 16 unanswered points behind three forced turnovers by their defense. The Titans’ offense battled back with a late-game drive that featured several big runs by D’Onta Foreman, who picked a first down on a fourth-and-1 play. But on fourth-and-6 on the Steelers’ 16-yard-line, Steelers cornerback Joe Haden stopped Titans receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine one yard short of the first down on a short throw by Ryan Tannehill.
The Titans led 10-0 after 15 minutes of play. The quarter’s only touchdown was a one-yard run by Tannehill following a 55-yard punt return by Chester Rogers. The Steelers got on the scoreboard by virtue of Chris Boswell’s 36-yard field goal four minutes into the second quarter. The score was set up by Arthur Maulet’s forced fumble off Anthony Firkser that was recovered by Minkah Fitzpatrick. Tennessee then put together a 19-play drive that took over 10 minutes off of the clock. The long drive ended with Randy Bullock’s 32-yard field goal after Cam Heyward sacked Tannehill on third-and-goal.
The Steelers cut their deficit to three points on Roethlisberger’s one-yard touchdown run on Pittsburgh’s second drive of the third quarter. The eight-play, 63-yard drive included Pittsburgh’s first third-down conversion of the game on a five-yard completion from Roethlisberger to Pat Freiermuth on third-and-1.
Three consecutive forced fumbles by Pittsburgh’s defense set up three Boswell field goals. The first turnover came when Joe Haden recovered Cam Sutton’s forced fumble of Racy McMath in Tennessee territory. Boswell’s go-ahead field goal with 7:20 left in the game was set up by Joe Schobert’s interception off of a tipped pass from fellow linebacker Taco Charlton. Boswell’s 48-yarder with 4:29 left was the product of T.J. Watt’s recovery of Tannehill’s fumbled snap.
The Titans then drove to the Steelers’ 16-yard-line before Derrek Tuszka sacked Tannehill on second down. Tannehill completed a short pass on third down before Haden stopped Westbrook-Ikhine from getting the extra yard needed for a first down.
We’ll have a full breakdown of Sunday’s game shortly, but in the meantime, check out our live blog below for in-game highlights and analysis.
Season Leaders
| passing |
|---|
  R. Tannehill 2965 YD, 14 TDS, 13 INTS R. Tannehill 2965 YD, 14 TDS, 13 INTS |
  B. Roethlisberger 3066 YD, 19 TDS, 7 INTS B. Roethlisberger 3066 YD, 19 TDS, 7 INTS |
| rushing |
 D. Henry 219 ATT, 937 YD, 10 TDS D. Henry 219 ATT, 937 YD, 10 TDS |
 N. Harris 237 ATT, 873 YD, 6 TDS N. Harris 237 ATT, 873 YD, 6 TDS |
| receiving |
 A. Brown 46 REC, 615 YD, 3 TDS A. Brown 46 REC, 615 YD, 3 TDS |
 D. Johnson 81 REC, 990 YD, 6 TDS D. Johnson 81 REC, 990 YD, 6 TDS |
See New Posts
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Foreman back in the game and picks up a first down.
Pinned
Crazy atmosphere. Chants of defense, two teams fighting for playoff spots. December football at its finest.
Pinned
Officials escorting Highsmith off the field for some reason.
Pinned
Foreman quickly gets the Titans in Steelers territory before leaving the game with trainers.
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Third straight turnover for the Titans, this one a fumbled snap that was picked up T.J. Watt, who receives “MVP” chants from the Heinz Field crowd.
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Steelers collect their third turnover of the game. Taco Charlton tipped the ball and the Steelers’ offense is in business.
Pinned
Pinned
Nice game so far for Devin Bush. Just forced a holding call as he pressured Tannehill on a blitz.
Pinned
Both teams have struggled in the red zone today (1-3). Penalties have largely contributed to those issues.
Pinned
Pinned
Pinned
Freiermuth ruled out for the rest of the game with a concussion.
Pinned
Roughing the passer wipes out James Washington’s fumble. Roethlisberger was hit low and was on the ground for a while before being helped up by his teammates.
See More