Getting first downs was something the Pittsburgh Steelers had a hard time finding in the first two weeks, so much so that their fans were chanting for offensive coordinator Matt Canada to be fired.
The calls may be expected to continue, and all has not been settled after a 23-18 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders, but they badly needed something to build on offensively moving forward.
They had 333 yards and 17 first downs, which by most NFL teams, is pedestrian, but the Steelers had 494 yards and 24 first downs in the first two weeks combined. Kenny Pickett threw for 235 yards and two touchdowns, the first time he passed for two touchdowns in his NFL career.
This win was the Steelers' first road win against the Raiders since 1995, though it didn't feel like a true road game with about half of the crowd wearing the Black & Gold and waving the Terrible Towel.
After two weeks of offensive struggles against two of the best defensive teams in the league, they regrouped and recovered against their historical rival.
T.J. Watt had another outstanding game for the Steelers, racking up half of the team's four sacks just sic days after he returned a Deshaun Watson for the game-winning touchdown. Heading into this game, the Raiders were the only team in the NFL to have not given up a sack in the first two weeks.
Chris Boswell has been as reliable as ever for the Steelers, making field goal from 43, 42, and 57 yards. His longest was a 59-yarder against the Dallas Cowboys three years ago, which he tied last season against the New York Jets for the longest field goal in Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium history.
The Steelers also intercepted Jimmy Garoppolo three times, increasing his total to six on the season, with Levi Wallace notching two.
Garoppolo, who was evaluated for a concussion after the game, finished 28 of 44 for 324 yards and two touchdowns, both to Davante Adams, where he had a highly impressive outing of 13 receptions for 172 yards.
It was the fourth time in Adams' career that he caught 13 passes, tied for the second-most he has had in a single game, and the sixth time he logged at least 170 receiving yards. He's now up to 22 multi-touchdown performances.
The ground games for both teams couldn't get going. Josh Jacobs, the rushing champion from last season, once again didn't find holes to run. His 62 yards on 17 carries now ups his total to 106 yards through three games. Najee Harris, his former Alabama Crimson Tide teammate, didn't fare any better, with 65 yards on 19 carries, entering the game with just 74 yards.
Both teams connected on long touchdowns to begin the game. Garoppolo turned a 4th & 1 into a 32-yard touchdown strike to Adams, while Pickett launched a 72-yard cannon to Calvin Austin III, who took off for the tying touchdown.
Then the Steelers took control of the game, with Patrick Peterson intercepting a Garoppolo pass which the Raiders quarterback threw into double coverage as he could not find an open receiver to throw to.
It took six plays for the Steelers to drive 81 yards, with Pickett capping it off on a 13-yard strike to Pat Freiermuth at the back left corner of the end zone to take the 23-7 lead.
The Raiders tried to mount a comeback, sparked by Garoppolo completing a 1-yard touchdown pass to Adams with the former Fresno State Bulldog spinning around his defender before making the catch. Subsequently, Garoppolo found rookie tight end Michael Mayer for the 2-point conversion after a penalty on the Steelers got the Raiders at the 1 for the second attempt at the try.
The touchdown came after a highly controversial roughing the passer penalty on Minkah Fitzpatrick for what appeared to be a clean sack of Garoppolo.
However, instead of trying for the tying touchdown, head coach Josh McDaniels opted for Daniel Carlson to kick a field goal with 2:22 left on a 4th & 4 from the 8.
Going for it would have given the Raiders a 15.8% chance to win as opposed to the 10.2% in kicking the field goal, according to ESPN analytics.
McDaniels thought that his defense would get the ball back with enough time to drive for a winning score. But when they got it back after DeAndre Carter recovered his own muffed punt, there were just 12 seconds left on the clock, and with all three of the Raiders' timeouts burned up. They were also backed up at their own 15.
Wallace's second interception of the game ended any chance of a miracle.
While the original plan of kicking a 48-yard field goal down by eight with 3:11 left made sense, the doubling down on it after a leverage penalty that gave the Raiders a first down doesn't.
And his logical reasoning was that the team would have to drive down the field to win instead of giving them the option to just get past midfield to get a chance at it. Plus, he's the play caller for an offense that is averaging 15 points per game, tied for the 5th worst in the NFL, and with the 5th most cap space dedicated to that side of the ball.
Garoppolo didn't help himself. In fairness, he had very little time to dissect the Steelers' defense, with 2.5 seconds or less to throw on 14 attempts. But an interception is an interception.
the team also needs to figure out their chemistry. Even with Adams, Jacobs, and Garoppolo, the offensive unit looks confused. Jacobs is averaging 2.4 yards per carry, while Garoppolo leads the league in interceptions. While it's Week 3, the time for a turnaround is now.
Early games are for establishing team identity, yet it doesn't seem as if the Raiders have a clear identity. Their upcoming Sunday game when they visit the Los Angeles Chargers will be very crucial for such establishment of an identity along with trying to get their offense together.
The Steelers, meanwhile, took three games to get a first quarter first down and a first quarter touchdown.
The wins over the Browns and Raiders may be cause for some optimism, but still it's a far cry from the playoff caliber team they looked like after the offseason and preseason hype. This is not a bad team, but it's one that is likely to get outmatched by the league's elite.
The secondary made plays, but still found no answers to an elite receiver like Adams. The offensive tackles don't have an answer for the elite pass rushers. Nick Bosa and Myles Garrett were largely neutralized, though largely in part of Pickett getting rid of the ball quickly. Neither Chukwuma Okorafor nor Dan Moore Jr. could contain Maxx Crosby.
But by committing to the run like they did against the Raiders, the Steelers utilized and were more successful with play action passing. The Browns and 49ers have held offenses to 2.8 and 3.7 yards per carry, while the Steelers' next opponent, the Houston Texans, allowed 4.3 yards per carry.
They just need to find that consistency. The lack of a ground game was the team's biggest issue, as the Steelers averaged just 48 rushing yards per game as a team before this game. Here, however, the Steelers racked up 105 rushing yards. Plus, they showed their commitment to the ground game, running the ball 31 times.
It opened up the passing game, namely on play action passes. 28% of Pickett's dropbacks came on play action, completing 6 of 8 such passing attempts for 61 yards and a third quarter touchdown to Freiermuth. On the season, Pickett is 12 of 16 out of play action for 159 yards, 9.9 yards per attempt, two touchdowns and no interceptions.
A bigger factor is a better performance from the offensive line. The Raiders, who allowed an average of 347.7 yards per game, weren't the same defensive challenge the Steelers faced in the last two weeks, even though they had their hands full with Crosby. Instead of doing everything to contain him like they did with Bosa and Garrett, the offensive line did a more rounded approach to neutralize Vegas' defense.
Even though Crosby had the lone sack for the Raiders, the Steelers did a better job at run blocking after meeting with Harris before the game so that they are on the same page.
That is a recipe for a "get-right" game, and they needed this badly considering the offensive struggles over the last two years. The Texans, who they face at Houston on Sunday in Week 4, despite holding the Jacksonville Jaguars to 17 points, have allowed 340.7 yards per game and a 73% completion percentage.
Scoring
Las Vegas, 7:04 1st: Davante Adams 32-yard TD pass from Jimmy Garoppolo (Daniel Carlson kick); 7-0 Las Vegas
Pittsburgh, 6:12 1st: Calvin Austin III 72-yard TD pass from Kenny Pickett (Chris Boswell kick); 7-7 Tie
Pittsburgh, 8:33 2nd: Chris Boswell 43-yard field goal; 10-7 Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, 1:56 2nd: Chris Boswell 42-yard field goal; 13-7 Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, 9:28 3rd: Chris Boswell 57-yard field goal; 16-7 Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, 3:56 3rd: Pat Freiermuth 13-yard TD pass from Kenny Pickett (Chris Boswell kick); 23-7 Pittsburgh
Las Vegas, 5:41 4th: Davante Adams 1-yard TD pass from Jimmy Garoppolo (Michael Mayer 2-PT pass from Jimmy Garoppolo); 23-15 Pittsburgh
Las Vegas, 2:22 4th: Daniel Carlson 26-yard field goal; 23-18 Pittsburgh
Passing
PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Kenny Pickett: 16/28, 235 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 1 sack, 108.5 passer rating
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS
Jimmy Garoppolo: 28/44, 324 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT, 4 sacks, 72.5 passer rating
Rushing
PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Najee Harris: 19 attempts, 65 yards, 0 TD
Jaylen Warren: 8 attempts, 29 yards, 0 TD
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS
Josh Jacobs: 17 attempts, 62 yards, 0 TD
Receiving
PITTSBURGH STEELERS
George Pickens: 4 receptions, 75 yards, 0 TD
Calvin Austin III: 2 receptions, 72 yards, 1 TD
Pat Freiermuth: 3 receptions, 41 yards, 1 TD
Allen Robinson II: 4 receptions, 24 yards, 0 TD
Jaylen Warren: 3 receptions, 23 yards, 0 TD
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS
Davante Adams: 13 receptions, 172 yards, 2 TD
Jakobi Meyers: 7 receptions, 85 yards, 0 TD
Defensive
PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Minkah Fitzpatrick: 11 tackles (7 solo)
Kwon Alexander: 7 tackles (5 solo), 1 QB hit
Levi Wallace: 6 tackles (4 solo), 4 passes defensed, 2 interceptions
Cole Holcomb: 5 tackles (5 solo), 1 TFL, 1 pass defensed
Patrick Peterson: 5 tackles (4 solo), 1 pass defensed, 1 interception
T.J. Watt: 2 tackles (2 solo), 2 TFL, 3 QB hits, 2 sacks
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS
Divine Deablo: 8 tackles (4 solo)
Robert Spillane: 7 tackles (6 solo)
Marcus Peters: 6 tackles (5 solo), 1 TFL
Nate Hobbs: 6 tackles (3 solo), 2 passes defensed
John Jenkins: 6 tackles (2 solo), 1 TFL, 1 QB hit
Maxx Crosby: 3 tackles (1 solo), 1 TFL, 2 QB hits, 1 sack
Team Stats
First Downs: Steelers 17, Raiders 19
Passing First Downs: Steelers 10, Raiders 12
Rushing First Downs: Steelers 5, Raiders 4
First Downs from Penalties: Steelers 2, Raiders 3
3rd Downs: Steelers 6/15, Raiders 4/13
4th Downs: Steelers 0/0, Raiders 1/2
Total Yards: Steelers 333, Raiders 362
Yards Per Play: Steelers 5.6, Raiders 5.4
Passing Yards: Steelers 228, Raiders 293
Team Passing: Steelers 16/28, Raiders 28/44
Yards Per Pass: Steelers 7.9, Raiders 6.1
Sacks—Yards Lost: Steelers 1—7 yards, Raiders 4—31 yards
Rushing Yards: Steelers 105, Raiders 69
Rushing Attempts: Steelers 31, Raiders 19
Yards Per Rush: Steelers 3.4, Raiders 3.6
Red Zone: Steelers 1/1, Raiders 1/2
Penalties: Steelers 6—45 yards, Raiders 7—60 yards
Turnovers: Steelers 0, Raiders 3
Fumbles Lost: Steelers 0, Raiders 0
Interceptions Thrown: Steelers 0, Raiders 3
Possession: Steelers 30:03, Raiders 29:57
Miscellaneous
Venue: Allegiant Stadium
Location: Paradise, NV
Attendance: 62,541 (Capacity: 65,000)
Weather: Cloudy, 68°F
Winds: SE 11 mph (gusts 19 mph)
Broadcast: NBC/Peacock
Commentators: Mike Tirico (PxP), Cris Collinsworth (color), Melissa Stark (reporter), Terry McAulay (rules analyst)
Officiating crew: Tra Blake (referee), Tony Michalek (umpire), Patrick Turner (down judge), Daniel Gallagher (line judge), Tom Hill (field judge), Don Willard (side judge), Todd Prukop (back judge)
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