The Gridiron Report: Steelers beat Seahawks 23-20
October 20, 2021
The Pittsburgh Steelers took down the Seattle Seahawks 23-20 in overtime. With the win, the Steelers are 3-3 on the season and have won two straight home games.
The scoring didn’t start until the second quarter as both teams struggled to do much on offense. The Steelers put together a 49-yard drive that ended with a Ben Roethlisberger 5-yard touchdown pass to rookie running back Najee Harris.
The Steelers struck again on their next drive with a 1-yard rushing touchdown from tight end Eric Ebron. This sent the Steelers into halftime with a 14-0 lead.
The Seahawks started the second half with a touchdown. Seattle ended a 75-yard drive with a 2-yard rushing touchdown from running back Alex Collins.
Pittsburgh drove up the field but had to settle for a 27-yard field goal that kicker Chris Boswell made with ease.
Seattle responded with another touchdown. This time quarterback Geno Smith found tight end Will Dissly for the 1-yard score. Seattle forced Pittsburgh to punt then tied the game with a field goal before the third quarter ended.
Once the Steelers got the ball back, Roethlisberger fumbled the ball after a botched pump fake. Seahawks defensive end Kerry Hyder recovered to give the ball back to Seattle. The Steelers defense was able to keep the game tied as they made a big stop.
The Steelers led a drive up field late in the game. Pittsburgh was held to a field goal as Chris Boswell made a 52-yarder to put them ahead by three with just under two minutes to go in the game. Seattle then drove up the field with urgency. Both safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and cornerback James Pierre forced fumbles, but the Steelers weren’t able to recover either. The Seattle kicker Jason Myers made a 43-yard field goal as time expired to tie the game and send it to overtime.
After both teams punted, Seattle had the ball. T.J. Watt made a huge play for Pittsburgh as a strip sack got the Steelers the ball back in field goal range. Chris Boswell knocked through a 37-yard field goal to win the game for Pittsburgh.
Roethlisberger wasn’t bad as he completed 29 of 40 passes for 229 yards and a touchdown. The only downside to his game was his fumble in the beginning of the fourth quarter, though thankfully the defense was able to stand strong.
Rookie running back Najee Harris had another good game as he ran the ball 24 times for 81 yards. He also caught the ball 6 times for 46 yards and a touchdown. Diontae Johnson led the Steelers in receiving with 9 catches for 71 yards. Rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth also had his best game of his young career as he caught 7 passes for 58 yards.
The defense performed well for the most part. Rookie safety Tre Norwood shined as he made a couple big plays for the Steelers. His biggest play came on a 3rd and 10 when he brought down Seattle receiver Freddie Swain for a 4-yard loss.
T.J. Watt shined once again as he came away with two sacks and a forced fumble. Pittsburgh’s pass rush was dominant as linebacker Alex Highsmith had a sack and a half, defensive end Cam Heyward had a sack, and defensive tackle Chris Wormley came away with half a sack.
The Steelers head into their bye week with a 3-3 record. They’ll take on the Cleveland Browns after their week off. It’ll be a revenge game for Pittsburgh as the Browns knocked them out of the playoffs last year. The Browns are 3-3 after losing to the Arizona Cardinals 37-14. They’ll look to bounce back against the Broncos on Sunday.