Raiders’ fast start unravels Steelers
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is sacked by Oakland Raiders defensive tackle Vance Walker during the fourth quarter Sunday.
Oakland Raiders running back Darren McFadden scores on a 4-yard touchdown run during the second quarter Sunday.
Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor celebrates with teammates Denarius Moore and Rod Streater after running for a 93-yard touchdown on his first play against the against the Steelers defense Sunday.
OAKLAND, Calif. – If the Steelers had any doubts that Oakland quarterback Terrelle Pryor was fast, Pryor erased them on the opening play from scrimmage Sunday.
Pryor set an NFL record for the longest run in NFL history by a quarterback, going 93 yards on the first play as Oakland jumped out to a 21-3 lead and held on for a 21-18 victory over the Steelers at O.co Coliseum.
It was a fast run in a fast start in a disheartening loss for the Steelers, who fall to 2-5.
“We had too many errors early on to give ourselves a chance,” said Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. “We allowed them to dictate the play of the game with how he started, really in all three phases. The first 30 minutes of football was poor on our part, and I take responsibility.”
Thanks in large part to the Pryor run, the Steelers were down 14-0 before they could blink.
Pittsburgh won the opening coin toss but deferred, choosing to kick off to the Raiders (3-4).
A holding penalty on the kick return put the ball at the Oakland 7-yard line, but on the first play from scrimmage, Pryor faked a handoff to the left and Pittsburgh’s defense bit hard, flowing in that direction.
Pryor, however, kept the ball and sprinted around the right end untouched, outracing the Steelers’ secondary for a 93-yard touchdown run that was the longest in Oakland history. It also broke Kordell Stewart’s NFL record for longest run by a quarterback. Stewart had an 80-yard run for the Steelers in 1996.
Pryor finished with nine carries for 106 rushing yards, and just 87 passing yards.
“We put ourselves behind the 8-ball on the first play, giving up that 93-yard run,” said Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley. “We can’t do that. We were playing from behind from the start.”
After the Steelers had their second three-and-out of the game on their second possession, Zoltan Mesko failed to catch a punt snap cleanly and Oakland running back Rashad Jennings, who began his college career at Pitt before transferring to Liberty, got past David Paulson at the line of scrimmage and tipped Mesko’s kick.
Oakland took possession at the Pittsburgh 26, and the Raiders turned that miscue into a 7-yard Darren McFadden touchdown run and a 14-0 lead with 7:28 remaining in the first quarter.
Safety Troy Polamalu gave the Steelers a jump-start with an interception of Pryor late in the first quarter, returning it 17 yards to midfield. Pittsburgh, however, stalled after one first down and settled for a 47-yard Shaun Suisham field goal to cut the Oakland lead to 14-3 with 14:14 remaining in the second quarter.
The Steelers appeared to catch a much-needed break when Oakland’s Jacoby Ford failed to field a punt cleanly and the loose ball rolled across his leg as he scrambled on the ground. Pittsburgh recovered the loose ball, but the officials ruled that Steelers cornerback Antwon Blake had touched the ball before Ford.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin challenged the play, but it was upheld upon review and Oakland took over at its own 28.
Eleven plays later, McFadden scored his second touchdown, this one on a direct snap, taking the ball to the right and jumping back inside to score untouched for a 21-3 Oakland lead late in the first half.
The Steelers were forced to punt again, and Mesko’s kick traveled only 30 yards. But Pryor was again intercepted, this time by cornerback Cortez Allen off a tipped pass, and Pittsburgh took over at its own 43.
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger drove the Steelers to the Oakland 16, but Suisham missed his first field-goal attempt in 16 tries, pushing a 34-yarder wide right.
To make matters worse, the Steelers took the opening kickoff of the second half to the Oakland 14 before stalling. Again Suisham missed a field goal, this one from 32 yards, and the Steelers still trailed 21-3.
“We would have won the football game if I was better,” said Suisham. “It’s hard to take.”
Roethlisberger was later intercepted by Oakland cornerback Mike Jenkins on a deep pass to Emmanuel Sanders early in the fourth quarter. But Pittsburhg linebacker Lawrence Timmons forced a fumble by Ford and defensive end Brett Keisel recovered at the Oakland 11. It was Pittsburgh’s first fumble recovery of the season.
On third down, Roethlisberger escaped initial pressure and tossed a short pass to wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders for a touchdown that pulled the Steelers to within 21-10 with 12:11 remaining in the game.
Antonio Brown gave the Steelers some life midway through the fourth quarter with a 44-yard punt return to the Oakland 31, but he fumbled a short completion from Roethlisberger on third down and the Raiders’ Tracy Porter recovered.
The Steelers got the ball back on a punt and scored on a short Le’Veon Bell run, and added a two-point conversion run by Sanders with 1:24 remaining to cut the gap to 21-18. Jennings, however, recovered an onside kick to end Pittsburgh’s chances.
“It hurts,” said Roethlisberger, who finished with 275 passing yards but was sacked five times.
“We thought we were getting better. But today, we weren’t there, really in all three phases. We didn’t throw well enough. We didn’t block well enough. We didn’t catch well enough. We just weren’t good enough today.”
Polamalu’s interception was the 31st of his career. … The Steelers lost guard Ramon Foster to a concussion in the second quarter. His replacement, Guy Whimper, suffered an injury to his left knee in the third quarter. He was replaced by Cody Wallace. … Guard David DeCastro left in the third quarter with an ankle injury. The Steelers then moved Kelvin Bachum from left tackle to right guard and put Mike Adams at left tackle. … The Steelers are 18-37 in games played in Pacific Time Zone.