Steelers keep Texans winless, 28-21
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers spent two quarters trying to hem in Deshaun Watson. It didn’t take. After watching the Houston quarterback move the Texans up and down
Heinz Field with remarkable ease, the Steelers blew up their meticulously put-together game plan and went back to their default setting: attack.
Might want to stick with that one. Probably for good.
Slicing into the backfield relentlessly, the Steelers put the clamps on the Texans in the second half to rally for a 28-21 victory that pushed them to 3-0 for the first time in a decade. Houston managed just 51 yards and two first downs over in the final 30 minutes to fall to 0-3.
“We didn’t blink, man,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said.
The Texans blinked plenty. Houston’s defense wilted late, giving up a 12-play, 79-yard touchdown drive
following a pick by Watson, one that ended with James Conner’s 12-yard sprint that put the Steelers up 28-21 with 6:24 to go. Pittsburgh forced its third three-and-out of the second half on Houston’s next possession and the Steelers then ran off the final 4:47 that began with a 25-yard dash by Conner and ended with three anticlimatic knee downs inside the Houston 10.
“You’re not going to win football doing what we do in the fourth quarter these last two weeks, giving up all of these runs,” said Texans defensive end J.J. Watt, whose team let the Ravens push them around late in a lopsided loss in Week 2.
Conner finished with 109 yards rushing and added 40 yards receiving. He had plenty of help from rookie Anthony McFarland, who ran for 42 yards on six carries in his NFL debut and Benny Snell Jr., who converted a key third-and-1 on the go-ahead touchdown drive. After opening the season with two relatively drama-free wins, the Steelers needed to overcome an early 11-point deficit to stay perfect.
“We’re a four-quarter team,” Conner said. “Our defense allowed us to get back in it and … (if) you get us back on offense, we’re going to get it going sooner or later.”