Old plan, same result as Steelers deal Chiefs first loss
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, left, is upended by Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Kevin Pierre-Louis (57) during the second half of an NFL football game in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell (26) scores while being tackled by Kansas City Chiefs defensive back Daniel Sorensen (49) and linebacker Frank Zombo (51) during the first half of an NFL football game in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
Associated Press
The Steelers said Wednesday they will not use the franchise tag for a second straight season on running back Le’Veon Bell.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Heading back to Kansas City to face a very familiar opponent, the Steelers went back to a tried-and-true formula.
Run the ball. Play solid defense. Allow your playmakers to be the difference.
Le’Veon Bell went for a season-high 179 yards and a touchdown on 32 carries, and Antonio Brown had eight catches for 155 yards and an improbable touchdown as the Steelers won in Kansas City for the second time in nine months, handing the previously unbeaten Chiefs their first loss, 19-13, Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.
The game plan was very similar to the one the Steelers used in their playoff win here last January, when Bell set a team postseason record with 170 yards on 30 carries and Brown caught passes for more than 100 yards in an 18-16 victory.
Head coach Mike Tomlin said last week, after a loss at home to Jacksonville dropped the Steelers’ record to 3-2, that he wanted to see it respond, not react.
By beating the NFL’s last unbeaten team in its stadium, the Steelers (4-2) did that.
“It was good to see the proper response,” said Tomlin. “But it is only significant if we move forward.”
Tomlin especially wanted to see quarterback Ben Roethlisberger respond after throwing a career-high five interceptions last week.
Roethlisberger was an efficient 17 of 25 for 252 yards and a touchdown with an interception on a play when Brown was supposed to run a slant and stopped short as the quarterback was throwing.
“I guess this old cowboy still has it,” Roethlisberger said.
Especially when the running game is churning out 194 yards.
The Steelers often put three receivers on the field and Kansas City (5-1) responded by going with five defensive backs, which the Steelers then ran against.
“If they were going to stay in certain personnel, we were going to run it,” said Roethlisberger. “We were just going to try to create matchup issues. I thought our guys did a good job.”
The Steelers even ran the ball in non-running situations, converting some third-and-longs with Bell runs.
“The thing about Kansas City is that they do what they do,” said Bell, who has 493 rushing yards in three games against the Chiefs in the past year. “For us, we’ve got to find ways to combat that.
“They pride themselves on their pass rush and playing man-to-man. We took a chance and ran the ball and ended up getting some first downs.”
With the offense eating up yardage, the Steelers led 12-3 midway through the fourth quarter when the Chiefs finally hit a big play.
Kansas City had only one first down in the opening half and just 25 yards total offense midway through the third quarter – before Alex Smith found DeAnthony Thomas behind the defense for a 57-yard touchdown that trimmed Pittsburgh’s lead to 12-10.
“We knew we needed a touchdown,” Brown said.
On third-and-2 from midfield, Roethlisberger went to Brown for what he thought was going to be a back-shoulder throw.
But the ball was thrown too far downfield and cornerback Phillip Gaines got a hand on it. The ball deflected off his helmet and into the waiting arms of Brown, who gathered it in, bounced off a tackle attempt by linebacker Terrance Smith and scooted down the sideline for a 51-yard TD and a 19-10 lead.
That proved to be crucial as Alex Smith connected on passes of 29 yards to running back Kareem Hunt and 23 yards to tight end Travis Kelce to set up a 33-yard Harrison Butker field goal with 2:17 remaining.
Leading 19-13, the Steelers went to Bell twice on running plays that netted two yards. Then, Roethlisberger threw incomplete to Bell on third down, forcing a punt just after the two-minute warning.
On third-and-10 from the Pittsburgh 40-yard line, another “old cowboy,” James Harrison, got around the end on left tackle Eric Fisher and sacked Smith for an eight-yard loss. Smith’s fourth-down pass down the middle to Thomas fell incomplete.
“He delivered a significant play in a significant moment,” said Tomlin of Harrison, who had been inactive the previous two weeks and had played only seven snaps this season.
“That is why we value him.”
The Steelers didn’t get much of a chance to rush the passer early in the game, though they trailed 3-2 at the end of the first quarter when a center snap sailed over Smith’s head and through the end zone on Kansas City’s first possession. Then the Steelers committed a major mistake.
Brown, who was back to field the ensuing free kick, allowed the short punt to hit the ground and it bounded away from him. Kansas City recovered at the Pittsburgh 32 to set up a 46-yard field goal.
But Bell took over the game on the next possession, running eight times on a 12-play, 75-yard drive to score on a three-yard run that put the Steelers ahead, 9-3.
Despite controlling the game, the Steelers added just three more points in the first half on a 24-yard Chris Boswell field goal.
The Steelers had outgained the Chiefs, 232-6, and had a 16-1 edge in first downs.
The Chiefs entered with the league’s highest-scoring offense and ranked second in yardage but were limited to 251 yards, much of which came in the fourth quarter.
“The guys did what they needed to do,” said Tomlin. “We made the necessary plays. We were not perfect, particularly in the second half, when they made their run. They are a good team and competitors, so we expected that. Thankfully, we were able to ward those guys off down the stretch with significant plays.”
Odds and end zones
The Steelers have beaten the Chiefs in five of their past six meetings. … Brown’s TD catch was the 53rd of his career, moving him past Lynn Swann and into third place on the Steelers’ all-time list. … Bell has 13 career games with at least 150 total yards, moving him past Franco Harris for the most in team history. … Harrison’s sack made him the first player in Steelers history to surpass 80 in his career. He has 80 1/2. … Hunt, who entered the game leading the NFL in rushing, had 21 yards on nine carries. … Vince Williams had two sacks before leaving the game with a bruised hip. … Right tackle Marcus Gilbert aggravated the hamstring injury that had kept him out of the previous three games. He left in the second quarter and was replaced by Chris Hubbard. … B.J. Finney started at left guard in place of Ramon Foster (back).