You never know what kind of show you will get when the Pittsburgh Steelers are on primetime. Some games can be just pure domination, some games can be sloppy, and some can be a true battle for the ages. On October 20th, 2014, the Steelers hosted the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football, with both teams coming in at 3-3. The winner would get a much-needed boost in an insane AFC, while the loser would take a step back and have to make a quick turnaround to get back into the playoff picture.
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Arian Foster watches the game from the sideline for the Houston Texans.
The game started off very sloppy for the Steelers. Even after a nice punt by Brad Wing, the Texans were able to march down the field on a 10-play, 94-yard touchdown drive. The Steelers had to respond, but a strip-sack at midfield quickly killed that response, and the Texans got a field goal out of it. They would get another field goal after the Steelers went three-and-out.
The Steelers finally responded with a long drive of their own. They went 60 yards on eight plays so set up Shaun Suisham for a field goal. Even with the Steelers finally scoring, it still felt like there was a long way to go. It was a two-possession game, and the Texans had been dominating the Steelers up to that point. The defense needed to step up and the offense needed to wake up.
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Steelers Antonio Brown and Hines Ward at then-Heinz Field.
Steelers Close Out The First Half With A Bang
Everything magically started clicking. After the defense forced a punt for the first time all game, Ben Roethlisberger connected with Le'Veon Bell for a 28-yard catch-and-run, then he found Martvais Bryant for a 35-yard touchdown to cut the lead to three. After that, the wheels started falling off for the Texans.
A very poor kickoff return put the Texans near their own goal line, then Arian Foster fumbled the ball at his own three-yard line. The Steelers then ran a toss play to Antonio Brown, who threw the ball to Lance Moore for a three-yard touchdown. That play gave the Steelers a 17-13 lead, but as Billy Mays used to say: but wait, there's more!
The Texans' very next play from scrimmage was intercepted by Brett Keisel, who returned it to the eight-yard line. Roethlisberger later found Bell in the end zone for a two-yard touchdown pass. The game finally went into halftime with the Steelers holding a 24-13 lead, and every point from the Steelers came from the final three minutes and change in the first half.
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Pittsburgh wide receiver Martavis Bryant running for the end zone during a home game for the Steelers.
While the Texans were trying to figure out what happened in that half, the Steelers were just excited that they had that sudden burst to close out the half. Bryant was just happy that he could contribute to the momentum swing.
"Everybody started clicking. Everybody woke up. It was good to make the play to have the team wake up, get the momentum going."
Both offenses fell asleep in the third quarter, as it turned into a punt-fest. The Texans eventually opened up the fourth quarter with a long drive for a field goal, but the Steelers responded immediately in kind. The Texans later hit DeAndre Hopkins for a chunk play that was immediately erased by a fumble that Troy Polamalu took back to Texans territory, which led to another field goal.
The Texans were able to march down the field for an 86-yard touchdown drive that only took 93 seconds, but it was too little too late. They failed the onside kick and the Steelers left with a 30-23 victory. If it wasn't for both sides of the ball having the best three minutes of some of their lives, the Steelers most likely drop the game. However, wins are not given on what-ifs, and the Steelers took what the Texans gave them to improve to 4-3.
What do you think about this game? What do you remember from it? Let us know in the comments.
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