The highs and lows of the Steelers matchup vs. the Los Angeles Chargers.
COIN TOSS: Chargers call tails. It's heads. Steelers defer. Chargers get the ball first.
8:27 p.m. – What Went Right: The Chargers moved to a couple of first downs after taking the opening kickoff, but it all came down to a fourth-and-1 from the Steelers 34-yard line. The Chargers opted for a 52-yard field goal attempt, but Michael Badgley missed the kick to the left, and the Steelers offense began its first series at the Pittsburgh 42-yard line with 11:19 left in the first period.
8:32 p.m. – What Went Right: Four plays after the Chargers' missed field goal, James Conner dove across the goal line to cap a four-play, 58-yard drive that gave the Steelers a 7-0 lead with 9:20 left in the first quarter. Ben Roethlisberger completed both of his passes, both to Antonio Brown, for 9 and 46 yards, respectively. The 46-yard hookup was a perfect throw and Brown made the catch after getting inside cornerback Casey Hayward.
8:40 p.m. – What Went Right: On the series following Conner's touchdown, the Steelers defense authored a three-and-out highlighted by a 9-yard sack from Terrell Edmunds. After a 48-yard punt, the Steelers' second series began at the Chargers 48-yard line with 7:42 remaining in the first period.
8:48 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers extended their lead to 13-0 with 4:41 remaining in the first period on a six-play, 48-yard drive again capped by a 1-yard run from James Conner. The big play was a pass interference penalty on Michael Davis on Ryan Switzer in the end zone that gave the Steelers the ball at the 1-yard line. On the touchdown, Maurkice Pouncey moved T.Y. McGill and Rosie Nix blocked Melvin Ingram to open a huge hole for Conner. Chris Boswell missed his fifth PAT of the season to make it 13-0.
8:57 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Chargers got on the scoreboard thanks to a six-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 46-yard touchdown pass to Travis Benjamin that never should have happened because right tackle Sam Tevi was moving before the snap. But the touchdown counted and the Steelers lead was sliced to 13-7 at the end of the first period.
9:10 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Steelers were 4-for-4 on third downs on the possession following the Chargers touchdown, but then things fell apart on a third-and-10 from the Chargers 10-yard line. Ben Roethlisberger floated a pass intended for Vance McDonald, but it was underthrown and intercepted at the 8-yard line by rookie Derwin James. Following the return and a penalty, the Chargers had the ball at their own 21-yard line with 10:36 left in the second quarter.
9:23 p.m. – What Went Right: The downside was that what preceded it was a three-and-out that included Vance McDonald running a 5-yard route on third-and-6. But Jordan Berry followed with a 63-yard punt with no return that had the Chargers starting at their own 17-yard line with 5:13 left in the first half.
9:32 p.m. – What Went Wrong: It ended with a 48-yard field goal by Chris Boswell that extended the Steelers' lead to 16-7 with 2:40 remaining in the first half, but the sense was that it was an opportunity lost. Following a three-and-out, L.J. Fort blocked a punt by Donnie Jones to give the Steelers the ball at the Chargers 34-yard line. On first down, Ben Roethlisberger overthrew a wide open Justin Hunter on a play that would've been an easy touchdown. On third down, another incomplete pass to Vance McDonald led to the Boswell field goal.
9:49 p.m. – What Went Right: It goes down as a six-play, 91-yard drive that ended with a 28-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Brown with 17 seconds left in the first half, but there was a lot more to it than that. It started with a 20-yard run by James Conner; it included a 24-yard completion to Antonio Brown along the right sideline that was overturned by replay; the drive was kept alive by a 17-yard pass interference penalty on Michael Davis on a pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster on a third-and-4; and then the capper was a beautiful laser from Ben Roethlisberger that hit Brown right in the chest among three Chargers defenders. That gave the Steelers a 23-7 lead at halftime.
10:27 p.m. – What Went Wrong: It was a 13-play, 88-yard drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Keenan Allen, and there were several opportunities for the Steelers defense to stop the drive. The Chargers converted three third downs with passes from Philip Rivers and a fourth on a running play. The touchdown pass to Allen looked like it was going to be intercepted by Joe Haden, but Sean Davis came across the field and blasted Haden to send the ball up into the air and into the hands of Allen. The Chargers cut the Steelers lead to 23-15 with 1:43 left in the third quarter with a two-point conversion pass to Antonio Gates.
10:41 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The offensive possession was plagued by a holding penalty and then a sack by Joey Bosa that had the Steelers punting from their own 16-yard line on a fourth-and-24. Desmond King returned the punt 73 yards for a touchdown, and then the Chargers tied the game on another two-point conversion pass, this one to Keenan Allen. It was 23-23 with 12:52 left in the fourth quarter.
10:57 p.m. – What Went Wrong: And now they were making it look easy. The Chargers completed a seven-play, 79-yard drive to take a 30-23 lead with 8:09 remaining in the fourth quarter, and they did it with an incomplete pass that was followed by gains of 14, 18, 19, 5, 5, and 18 yards for the touchdown on a run by Justin Jackson.
11:16 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers tied the game with a 12-play, 78-yard drive that was capped by a 10-yard pass to Jaylen Samuels, who used a nice block from JuJu Smith-Schuster to get into the end zone. The Steelers converted a fourth-and-1 with a 1-yard run by James Conner, who appeared to injure an ankle later in the drive and had to leave the game.
11:34 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Chargers answered the Steelers' tying touchdown and again marched directly into position for the game-winning field goal. Michael Badgley's 39-yard attempt was wide to the left, but the play was nullified by an offside penalty on Joe Haden. His next attempt, from 34 yards, was blocked by Artie Burns, but that play was nullified by an offside penalty on Burns. Badgley then kicked the game-winner from 29 yards out on an untimed down to give the Chargers a 33-30 victory.
FINAL SCORE: Chargers 33, Steelers 30
