No TDs scored by Pittsburgh, but Boswell gets his kicks
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chris Boswell’s pinpoint right leg and Le’Veon Bell’s two dancing feet. They do call it football, after all.
Indeed, Bell spent much of Sunday watching the film “Happy Feet.”
“I wasn’t nervous about the game,” Bell said. “I don’t watch ESPN or NFL Live, because I know they’ll talk about the game. I don’t necessarily want to think about the game.
“I watch stuff like ‘Happy Feet.’ ”
Who needs to reach the end zone when you have Bell chewing up yards and clock, and Boswell setting an NFL playoff record with six field goals? Throw in a stingy Pittsburgh defense and a multitude of mistakes by Kansas City, and the Steelers’ 18-16 victory sent them to the AFC Championship Game.
The Steelers needed to hold off a last-ditch threat by the Chiefs before advancing to face New England on Sunday night for a spot in the Super Bowl. The Patriots won at Pittsburgh 27-16 in October, but Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was injured and didn’t play.
Since 2001, the Patriots and Steelers have combined to win nine AFC titles.
Spencer Ware’s 1-yard touchdown run cut Kansas City’s deficit to 18-16. The Chiefs at first converted the two-pointer to tie it, but tackle Eric Fisher — the first overall selection in the 2013 draft — was penalized for holding. The next try failed.
“We shot ourselves in the foot a bunch,” Fisher said. “Negative plays, you’ve got to keep moving the chains.”
Fisher was diplomatic when asked whether the flag thrown on him was the correct call, saying only that he was “frustrated” by it.
With 2:43 remaining, Justin Gilbert misplayed the kick return and was tackled at the Pittsburgh 5. Roethlisberger hit Antonio Brown for 7 yards on third down and Pittsburgh then ran out the clock, securing its ninth straight victory and handing the Chiefs their fifth straight home playoff lost.
“I feel like we left a lot of plays on the field that we should have made,” Kansas City linebacker Justin Houston said.
The scoring started furiously in the opening minutes, then the game became a kicking exhibition by Boswell, who also had six field goals Dec. 18 against Cincinnati. And Bell put on a virtuoso running performance, patiently finding holes and then exploding through them. He added a team-record 170 yards rushing to the 167 he had in a win over Miami last week.
“The coaches put a lot of trust in me to get the job done,” Bell said of his 30 carries.
The Steelers became the first team to win a playoff game without a TD since eventual Super Bowl champion Indianapolis in the 2006 AFC divisional round at Baltimore.
Using a no-huddle attack almost to perfection early on, the Steelers drove deep into Kansas City territory. But they bogged down inside the 5 and Boswell made a 22-yard field goal.
The Chiefs were just as efficient on a six-play march capped by receiver Albert Wilson lining up in the backfield, then slipping uncovered into the end zone for a 5-yard score.
Pittsburgh’s answer came on a 52-yard heave to All-Pro Brown, which led to Boswell’s second field goal, a 38-yarder. He added a 36-yarder to cap a 14-play drive on which Pittsburgh again barely huddled.
Boswell’s fourth field goal, from 45 yards, made it 12-7 at the half. His 43-yarder tying the league mark of five, came on Pittsburgh’s first series of the second half. A 43-yarder midway in the fourth quarter set the NFL record.