Steelers fall to 2-1 with a thud, 34-3

EAGLES 34, STEELERS 3 Steelers’ record: 2-1 One year ago: 2-1 Series record (including playoffs): Eagles lead, 47-27-3 **STORYLINE* The game was billed as a matchup between the present and future Ben Roethlisberger, with Eagles rookie Carson Wentz drawing comparisons to the Steelers quarterback because of similarities in size and the ways their respective rookie seasons began. Roethlisberger went 13-0 as a starter in his rookie regular season, and Wentz came into the game against the Steelers with a 2-0 record, but maybe more impressive was the fact he had completed 60 percent of his passes and had committed no turnovers. HOW THE STORYLINE PLAYED OUT Stated simply, the Steelers stunk. In every phase of the game. Dropped passes. Missed receivers. Missed tackles. Little pressure on the passer. A blocked field goal. Nothing in the return game. Costly penalties. There wasn’t an area of the Steelers’ performance that at first glance was good enough to win with. And then, there were the injuries. By the end of the game, the Steelers were playing without Ryan Shazier, Ryan Shazier, Ramon Foster, Eli Rogers, and Robert Golden. *TURNING POINT* The tone of the game was set early in the first quarter. On the Steelers’ first three offensive possessions, they had a field goal blocked, punted, and then settled for a field goal at the end of an eight-play, 61-yard drive. As for the Eagles, their first three possessions produced a field goal, a touchdown, and a field goal for a 13-3 lead. Taking the early lead allowed the Eagles to dictate the flow of the game. It allowed Philadelphia to stay away from having to take chances with their rookie quarterback on offense, and having the early allowed played into Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s aggressive style. *STAT THAT STANDS OUT I** According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this game snapped the Steelers’ streak of 305 straight games of not trailing by as many as 30 points. That streak was the longest in NFL history. The Steelers’ losing streak in Philadelphia reached nine games over a span of 51 years. The last time the Steelers defeated the Eagles in Philadelphia, by a 20-14 score in 1965, they were similarly dominated in virtually every statistical category, but in that game the Eagles committed five turnovers, two of which were turned directly into touchdowns by the Steelers. The Eagles committed no turnovers today. STAT THAT STANDS OUT II The 31-point loss represented the biggest margin of the Mike Tomlin era. The previous worst was a 28-point loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the 2011 regular season opener.

Postgame Takes

Steelers fall to 2-1 with a thud, 34-3