Steelers outlast Detroit, 20-15
Tomlin called it an “enormous play on third down” and indeed it was, but his defense had a few of its own despite allowing 423 yards passing by Matthew Stafford. That should be enough to knock the Steelers out as the No. 1 pass defense, but those huge goal-line stands were good enough for them.
“It’s pride, it’s heart,’’ Cam Heyward explained of what goes into those plays near the goal line. “We challenged each other and then you have to ring that bell. It’s not easy.”
All three of those series came in the second half. The Lions had first down at the 4, reachedthe 1 on second down and then two plays got them nothing, the final one a sack by Tyson Alualu, filling in for injured Stephon Tuitt, on fourthdown at the 1 when the Lionsdecided not to kick.
Four plays later, Roethlisberger on third-and-9, hit Smith-Schuster over the middle at the 28 and he fastpedaled the rest of the way for that 97-yard score. All in all, the rookie had seven catches for 193 yards.
The Lions came right back for another first down at the 4, reached the 1 after a nice third-down tackle by Sean Davis and this time opted for a 19-yard field goal on fourth down.
“This game was so tight, it wasn’t like you could hang your hat on the previous redzone stop,’’ Tomlin said. “We appreciated those moments but you knew they’d probably have to do it again.”
And his defense did. Back came the Lions, from their 15 to a first down at the Steelers 11. But on third down at the 6, Mike Hilton tackled Theo Riddick for a 2-yard loss and on fourth down, Javon Hargrave got such a push up the middle that Stafford threw poorly and incomplete. There was 1:54 left and the Steelers got a first down and ran out the clock.
Cornerback Joe Haden said all those goal-line stops had to “[tick] them off, make them upset, especially on fourth down.”
Those stops also masked some disappointing play on defense and offense for the Steelers. Eli Rogers dropped a touchdown pass wide open on the first series and Roethlisberger and Darrius Heyward-Bey could not hook up on another wide-open play in the end zone later. Le’Veon Bell lost only the third fumble of his career and was held to 76 yards on 25 carries, although one of those went for a 5-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Roethlisbeger (17 of 31, 317 yards) threw one interception.
“It gets frustrating when you don’t win,’’ Bell said simply of the missed opportunities.
There also was the matter of all those passing yards against the NFL’s statistically best pass defense.
“I just heard we gave up 400 yards passing,’’ a surprised Heyward said.
But the Lions had trouble on the ground, too, with just 71 yards and a 3.2 average per carry. The Steelers also came up with one turnover when Golden Tate fumbled without being hit midway through the fourth quarter and Artie Burns recovered at the Steelers 24, stifling another Detroit opportunity.
The Steelers were outgained, 482 yards to 392, did not play their best game but did beat a good quarterback on the road.
“We got the job done,’’ Bell said.
It was enough this night as their third consecutive victory kept them right on track at their halfway point.