Buccaneers 27
(1-3, 1-1 away)
1:00 PM ET, September 28, 2014
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA
Top Performers
Passing: B. Roethlisberger (PIT) - 314 YDS, 3 TDRushing: L. Bell (PIT) - 19 CAR, 63 YDS
Receiving: A. Brown (PIT) - 7 REC, 131 YDS, 2 TD
Associated Press
Bucs Win On Late TD
Given multiple chances at redemption thanks to the sloppy Pittsburgh Steelers, the Buccaneers didn't let this one get away.
Mike Glennon hit a diving Vincent Jackson for a 5-yard touchdown with 7 seconds remaining to lift Tampa Bay to a stunning 27-24 win Sunday.
More from ESPN.com
Bucs
receiver Louis Murphy, signed earlier in the week, seized the spotlight
during an upset win in Pittsburgh. Sound familiar? It should, Pat
Yasinskas writes. Story
The Steelers beat themselves again as 13 penalties for 125 yards led to an embarrassing loss to the Bucs, Scott Brown writes. Story"I was out last year, so it's been a long time since I've tasted winning a game," Smith said. "For our football team, we needed this."
Did they ever. Only a pair of garbage time touchdowns against the Falcons prevented Tampa Bay from the worst loss in a franchise history littered with lopsided defeats.
The Buccaneers responded with relentless if not exactly crisp play on a day the two teams combined for 22 penalties.
Glennon passed for 302 yards in his first start of the season, including a 41-yard catch-and-run by Louis Murphy that set up Jackson's score.
"We made so many mistakes out there, but we found a way to win," Smith said. "That was a hurdle we needed to get over."
Doug Martin ran for 40 yards and a touchdown in his return from injury. Murphy caught six passes for 99 yards, and rookie wide receiver Mike Evans hauled in the first touchdown of his career before leaving with a groin injury.
Tampa Bay's defense struggled keeping the Steelers in check, though Pittsburgh did its best to stop itself by drawing 13 flags and letting a handful of chances to move to 3-1 for the first time since 2010 slip away.
Ben Roethlisberger passed for 314 yards and three touchdowns, but the Steelers (2-2) couldn't protect a late lead.
Antonio Brown caught seven passes for 131 yards and two scores, and Heath Miller added a career-high nine receptions with a touchdown.
Pittsburgh rallied from an early 10-point deficit and appeared to be in complete control at times.
"We can't go out and expect to beat an NFL team and beat ourselves as well," defensive end Brett Keisel said.
Tampa Bay twice found itself down a touchdown in the second half. Both times the Buccaneers scrambled back.
A 3-yard touchdown run by Martin tied the game at 17 in the third quarter. After Roethlisberger found Miller for a 5-yard touchdown to put Pittsburgh back in front, Tampa Bay kept coming against a Steelers defense that struggled to get to the quarterback even with the addition of linebacker James Harrison.
The five-time Pro Bowler returned to Pittsburgh after an 18-day retirement to help an injury-depleted defense.
Patrick Murray kicked a 27-yard field goal to get the Buccaneers within 24-20. The Steelers tried to go for the knockout punch but couldn't deliver. Roethlisberger found Brown behind the coverage on a flea flicker, but the pass glanced off the Pro Bowler's fingertips.
Tampa Bay responded by driving to the Steelers 14 only to stall. Glennon overthrew Jackson in the back of the end zone on fourth down with 1:53 to go.
"It would have been tough to sleep tonight if we didn't get another chance or win this game because those are throws that I need to make if we're going to win games," Glennon said.
Pittsburgh couldn't muster a first down, giving the Buccaneers one last shot.
Taking over at the Steelers 46 after a 29-yard punt, Glennon hit Murphy in stride. He was finally pulled to the ground at the Pittsburgh 5. Jackson couldn't haul in a pass on second down, but responded on the next play by stretching his 6-foot-5 frame to make the grab.
"I knew Mike was going to give me a chance for a ball on the outside," Jackson said. "I went out there and competed for the ball."
The Steelers were left wondering how they've become one of the league's most undisciplined teams.
"We need to fix it," Tomlin said. "And if we don't we'll continue to lose close football games."
Game notes
Tampa Bay DT Gerald McCoy had two tackles and a sack in his return from a hand injury. ... The win was the Bucs' second in nine meetings with the Steelers. ... Tampa Bay S Dashon Goldson left with an ankle injury and did not return. ... Roethlisberger became the 12th quarterback in NFL history to go over 35,000 career yards passing.
Copyright by STATS LLC and The Associated Press
Photo Wire
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 28: Antonio Brown #84 of the Pittsburgh Steelers warms up prior to the game against...
(Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
(Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
Team Stat Comparison
TB
|
PIT
| |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Downs | 21 | 27 |
Passing 1st downs
| 11 | 18 |
Rushing 1st downs
| 7 | 6 |
1st downs from penalties
| 3 | 3 |
3rd down efficiency
| 7-13 | 6-14 |
4th down efficiency
| 0-1 | 1-1 |
| Total Plays | 64 | 73 |
| Total Yards | 350 | 390 |
| Yards per play | 5.5 | 5.3 |
| Total Drives | 10 | 11 |
| Passing | 287 | 305 |
Comp-Att
| 21-43 | 30-41 |
Yards per pass
| 6.5 | 6.6 |
Interceptions thrown
| 1 | 0 |
Sacks-Yards Lost
| 1-15 | 5-26 |
| Rushing | 63 | 85 |
Rushing Attempts
| 20 | 27 |
Yards per rush
| 3.2 | 3.1 |
| Red Zone (Made-Att) | 3-5 | 2-3 |
| Penalties | 9-50 | 13-125 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
Fumbles lost
| 0 | 1 |
Interceptions thrown
| 1 | 0 |
| Defensive / Special Teams TDs | 0 | 0 |
| Possession | 25:45 | 34:15 |
Passing Leaders
| TB | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | SACKS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glennon | 21/42 | 302 | 7.2 | 2 | 1 | 1-15 | |
| Rainey | 0/1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | |
| PIT | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | SACKS | |
| Roethlisberger | 29/40 | 314 | 7.9 | 3 | 0 | 5-26 | |
| Brown | 1/1 | 17 | 17.0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | |
Scoring Summary
| FIRST QUARTER | TB | PIT | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | TD | 13:01 | Mike Evans 7 Yd pass from Mike Glennon (Patrick Murray Kick)
Drive info: 2 plays, 9 yds, 0:44
| 7 | 0 |
| FG | 10:01 | Patrick Murray 50 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 6 plays, 23 yds, 1:24
| 10 | 0 |
 | FG | 6:19 | Shaun Suisham 25 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 10 plays, 73 yds, 3:42
| 10 | 3 |
| TD | 0:15 | Antonio Brown 11 Yd pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Shaun Suisham Kick)
Drive info: 9 plays, 60 yds, 4:43
| 10 | 10 |
| SECOND QUARTER | TB | PIT | |||
| TD | 4:58 | Antonio Brown 27 Yd pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Shaun Suisham Kick)
Drive info: 13 plays, 93 yds, 7:25
| 10 | 17 |
| THIRD QUARTER | TB | PIT | |||
| TD | 12:27 | Doug Martin 3 Yd Run (Patrick Murray Kick)
Drive info: 8 plays, 80 yds, 2:33
| 17 | 17 |
| TD | 7:50 | Heath Miller 5 Yd pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Shaun Suisham Kick)
Drive info: 10 plays, 80 yds, 4:37
| 17 | 24 |
| FOURTH QUARTER | TB | PIT | |||
| FG | 11:37 | Patrick Murray 27 Yd Field Goal
Drive info: 12 plays, 83 yds, 4:39
| 20 | 24 |
| TD | 0:07 | Vincent Jackson 5 Yd pass from Mike Glennon (Patrick Murray Kick)
Drive info: 5 plays, 46 yds, 0:33
| 27 | 24 |
Research Notes
Ben Roethlisberger
was sacked five times on 42 dropbacks against a four-man pass rush
Sunday. Roethlisberger had been sacked five times on 90 dropbacks all
season against standard pressure before today.
|
Mike Glennon was just 3-of-9 when targeting Vincent Jackson
in the game, but hit him for the game-winning score with just seconds
remaining. Glennon's last four throws to Jackson went into the end zone,
the last being the only one completed.
Overall, Glennon was 15-of-29 for 226 yards, two touchdowns and an
interception targeting wide receivers (10 first downs). Glennon has 21
completions to wide receivers in seven quarters this season, while Josh McCown had 22 in his 10 quarters at quarterback.
|
Antonio Brown set an NFL record with his 20th consecutive game with at least 5 receptions.
[+] |
Shaun Suisham just hit his 24th-straight field goal. Only Dan Bailey has a longer active streak (28).
|
Tampa
Bay's touchdown drive to open the 3rd quarter went for 80 yards. The
Buccaneers had just 64 yards of offense in the entire first half.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment