Steelers get 2nd win in row by beating Falcons on road

ATLANTA — Don’t look now, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are making a slow climb back to respectability.

Nothing was pretty about a 19-16 victory against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium other than it represented a second consecutive win for the Steelers and third in the past four games.

“Long overdue,” defensive tackle Cameron Heyward said.

After a 3-7 start to the season, the Steelers are 5-7 heading into their AFC North showdown next Sunday against the division-leading Baltimore Ravens (8-4).

“It’s good for our morale,” said running back Najee Harris, who rushed for a game-high 86 yards. “Stacking two wins in a row, being where we were at before when we were trying to get a win, we changed that a lot, and that’s a big jump.”

Not only have the Steelers won two in a row, both victories came on the road. While the Steelers still occupy last place in the AFC North — they remain tied with the Cleveland Browns — the wins have provided optimism heading into the final stretch of the season.

“If you want to be somebody to be considered and taken seriously, you’ve got to stack wins,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “Hopefully, it’s a launching pad for us as we move forward. It wasn’t perfect, but I thought we did what was required.”

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The Steelers built a 19-6 lead on the strength of four Matthew Wright field goals and rookie Connor Heyward’s first career touchdown catch in a return to his hometown. But before the win was sealed on Minkah Fitzpatrick’s interception with 35 seconds remaining, the Steelers had to sweat the following:

• After the Falcons scored a touchdown with 43 seconds left in the third, the Steelers nearly gave the ball back at their 34 on the first play of the fourth. Diontae Johnson dropped a pass that was ruled a fumble, with Falcons linebacker Rashaan Evans recovering. A replay review, however, reversed the call and determined Johnson never had possession.

• After the Steelers punted for the first time in the game, the Falcons appeared to get a potential go-ahead touchdown on Cordarrelle Patteron’s 10-yard run. It was nullified by a holding call, the first of two penalties against the Falcons on the drive. The Steelers maintained the lead when the Falcons settled for Younghoe Koo’s 28-yard field goal with 5 minutes, 27 seconds left.

• The Steelers got three first downs on the next drive, forcing the Falcons to use all of their timeouts. Pressley Harvin’s punt backed up the Falcons on the 2 with 42 seconds left. Fitzpatrick’s interception took care of the rest.

“We needed it,” Johnson said after catching five passes for 60 yards. “We’re still trying to win out the rest of the season and hopefully get a chance to get in the playoffs.”

Rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett didn’t throw an interception for the fourth game in a row, completing 16 of 28 passes for 197 yards that included the Steelers’ only touchdown — his 17-yard toss to Heyward.

That touchdown ended a four-play, 75-yard drive that featured Pat Freiermuth’s 57-yard catch-and-run down the sideline. The quick strike was an anomaly on a day when the Steelers had possessions that lasted 16, 12, nine and 14 plays yet produced a quartet of Wright field goals.

“I was frustrated, to be honest with you, because we keep settling for three points when we’re so close,” Harris said.

In the past three victories, the Steelers have rushed for 217, 172 and 154 yards. Seven players carried the ball against the Falcons. Harris, who missed the second half against Indianapolis with an abdominal injury, averaged 5.1 yards on his 17 carries.

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“We’re finding our identity,” Harris said.

Pickett did his part by not turning the ball over. He has thrown 128 passes without an interception, and he set the tone by helping the Steelers convert four times on third down on the opening drive. Two were first-down completions to Freiermuth.

“It’s being smart and making sure that I put our team in a position to win,” Pickett said. “Sometimes that’s throwing it away or tucking it in to run. Whatever I need to do to make sure we are in the best position to win is really what I have to do. I felt like I’ve done a lot better job of that these past couple weeks, and it’s something that I think is a recipe for success for us if I continue to do that moving forward.”

And, unlike the previous two games, the Steelers offense didn’t stall immediately after halftime. They pieced together a 14-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Wright’s 33-yard field goal that provided a 19-6 lead with 4:46 left in the third.

“We emphasized at halftime coming out fast,” Harris said. “We didn’t want to be so flat.”

The Falcons offense, though, finally got on track. Entering the game with the NFL’s fourth-best rushing unit, Atlanta had just 28 yards on six attempts in the first half. The tide turned after Wright’s final field goal, and the Falcons finished with 146 yards on 28 attempts.

“They did a good job of controlling the line of scrimmage in the second half,” Tomlin said. “The time of possession got tight. I thought our guys collectively did not blink and made the necessary plays to secure victory.”