Steelers 24, Colts 17
The Steelers had endured the toughest schedule in the NFL thus far, but were finally matched up with a poor opponent. It was apparent that they were in for an easier time when they jumped out to a 16-3 lead heading into halftime. The Steelers dominated both sides of the ball. Defensively, Pittsburgh nearly picked Matt Ryan on his first throw, then intercepted him on his second attempt when he telegraphed a pass. The Steelers swarmed Ryan in the pocket throughout the first half and disrupted everything he tried to do. Heading into intermission, Ryan was just 5-of-13 for 36 yards and an interception.
Pittsburgh outgained Indianapolis at that point, 232-71, as Kenny Pickett threw a number of impressive passes against Indianapolis. This includes a tremendous 35-yard connection with George Pickens on a back-shoulder heave along the sideline. Pickett really made just one poor throw in the first half when he missed Pickens for a touchdown. He also took a bad sack to move out of field goal range on an early drive. Still, he did extremely well, especially when faced with adversity in the second half.
Thanks to a great kickoff return, the Colts scored two touchdowns in the third quarter to go up 17-16. Pickett was able to engineer a scoring drive with three converted third downs, ultimately leading to a rushing touchdown. With a two-point conversion, the Steelers went up 24-17, and they were able to hold the lead, thanks to two great defensive stops that happened to feature some questionable time management by new interim head coach Jeff Saturday.
Pickett finished 20-of-28 for 174 yards. He did some damage with his legs, as he had some well-timed runs to scramble six times for 32 rushing yards. Pickett missed a touchdown, as mentioned, but he was robbed of a score as well when Diontae Johnson dropped a ball in the end zone.
Speaking of Johnson, he had a good game otherwise with five catches for 49 yards. He trailed only Pickens on the stat sheet, with Pickens hauling in three balls for 57 yards.
The one dark cloud over this victory was that Najee Harris suffered an injury in the second quarter. Harris had rushed for 35 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries prior to leaving. Benny Snell looked good as a replacement, rumbling for 62 yards and a score on 12 attempts.
Jonathan Taylor was the leading rusher in this game, picking up 86 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. However, he made a grave mistake when he fumbled a handoff in the red zone.
