NFL: Howard’s TD run in overtime gives Bears surprise win over Steelers
CHICAGO— Jordan Howard pushed through the pain in his right shoulder to give the Bears the lift they needed.
Howard scored on a 19-yard run in overtime to lead Chicago to a 23-17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
Howard’s winning score came two plays after rookie Tarik Cohen broke off an electric run for what appeared to be a 73-yard game-winning touchdown. But he was ruled out at the Pittsburgh 37. Howard took over from there and got a big assist as he ran along the left side. Deonte Thompson might have grabbed Pittsburgh’s Artie Burns while pushing him out of bounds. But no flag was thrown, and the Bears (1-2) came away with a surprising victory.
“You always dream about stuff like that but it never happens so it was real crazy,” Howard said. “Definitely, it was a very wacky game but through everything that happened we found a way to win.”
Howard came up clutching his right shoulder — which has bothered him since the opener — several times and wasn’t sure he would make it through this game.
He wound up with 138 of Chicago’s 220 yards rushing and two touchdown runs. It was just what the Bears needed with quarterback Mike Glennon delivering another lacklustre performance.
The Steelers, who fell to 2-1, stayed off the sideline for the national anthem in the wake of President Donald Trump’s comments that players who kneel in protest should be fired. Coach Mike Tomlin called commissioner Roger Goodell in the morning to notify him of the team’s plans. Left tackle Alejandro Villanueva — an Army veteran — stood near the tunnel with his hand over his heart.
Once the game ended, they found themselves in a familiar spot — losing to a lesser team and losing in Chicago, where they are 1-13 against the Bears.
The Steelers have had at least one head-scratching loss every year going back to 2012.
“We faced a lot of adversity today and most of it was created by us,” said Tomlin.
Last year, Pittsburgh fell 34-3 to Philadelphia, which finished with a losing record. In 2015, the Steelers were surging toward a playoff spot, when they lost late in the season to a Baltimore team that went 5-11.
Despite the victory, Glennon did nothing to stop the calls in Chicago for No. 2 overall draft pick Mitchell Trubisky, throwing for just 101 yards with a touchdown and interception.
Marcus Cooper committed an inexplicable fumble after the Bears blocked a field goal in the closing seconds of the half. With a clear path to the end zone, he slowed down and had the ball poked away at the 1.
But the Bears won for just the first time in nine September games over three seasons under coach John Fox.
Ben Roethlisberger blamed himself for Pittsburgh’s loss.
“I think I was off today,” he said after throwing for 235 yards and a touchdown. “For whatever reason, I did not make all the throws I normally would and make the plays I normally should.
“We can’t make excuses. I need to play better football. I’ll take this game on me. I didn’t play well enough. I missed too many throws.”
Antonio Brown had 110 yards receiving and a touchdown. And Le’Veon Bell ran for 61 yards and a TD for Pittsburgh.