The Steelers’ offense could not move the ball consistently against Green Bay and the defense could not stop Packers legend Aaron Rodgers, as Pittsburgh fell to 1-3 with a 27-17 loss yesterday.
Rodgers was 20-for-36 passing for 248 yards and two touchdowns and the Packers’ run game ripped through the Steelers defense for 131 yards. Rodgers tied Dan Marino for sixth on the all-time touchdown passes list with 420.
The Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger completes 26 of 40 passes for 232 yards with a touchdown to Diontae Johnson on the first possession of the game, but Big Ben also threw an interception and missed a wide open JuJu Smith-Schuster on what would have been a touchdown pass in the second quarter. The TD pass to Johnson was the 400th of Roethlisberger’s career, making him the eighth man in NFL history to reach that milestone.
With all of the drama of the game, the most important play might have been a late second quarter blocked field goal by Minkah Fitzpatrick that he scooped up and ran back 75 yards for a touchdown. The play was called back because of a questionable offside penalty on Joe Haden and the Packers then kicked the field goal.
Coach Mike Tomlin says the Steelers are just not playing well enough to win.
Ben Roethlisberger says he should have hit the long pass that was just out of JuJu’s reach.
Najee Harris had his best rushing day for the Steelers, gaining 62 yards on fifteen carries with a touchdown. Roethlisberger says he told Najee to start running over people rather than around them.
JuJu says he should have caught the pass from Big Ben for the touchdown.
TJ Watt and Alex Highsmith were back in the lineup for the Steelers, but neither was full speed, and it showed as they were unable to get to Rodgers or to stop the Green Bay rushers.
The Steelers played without two injured starters, wide receiver Chase Claypool and tackle Chuks Okorafor. They lost guard Kevin Dotson in the game due to a hip flexor injury and cornerback Cam Sutton left the game with a groin injury. Defensive tackle Cam Heyward and linebacker Devin Bush also left the game briefly with injuries but both returned.
Next up for the Steelers is a game at Heinz Field on Sunday against once-beaten Denver.
AFC NORTH
Elsewhere in the AFC North, the Ravens beat the Broncos 23-7 and tied the Steelers NFL record for consecutive games with 100 yards rushing, with 43. The Steelers set the record between 1974 and 1977. Lamar Jackson pushed Baltimore over the 100-yard mark with a five-yard run on the last play of the game, rather than take the knee with three seconds left.
The Browns beat the Vikings, 14-7.
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