Steelers defense steps up to take down Colts
A Jekyll-and-Hyde first half of the NFL season concluded with the Pittsburgh Steelers holding a two-game lead for first place in the AFC North.
That fact was nearly as surprising as the result Sunday at Acrisure Stadium.
The good side of the Steelers was on display in a 27-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, the team with the league’s best record. The defense forced five turnovers — the Steelers had six takeaways overall — and the offense turned those gifts into 24 points.
It stopped a run of bad performances in which the Steelers’ defense hemorrhaged points and yards while losing back-to-back games against Cincinnati and Green Bay, the latter a prime-time letdown at home.
“It’s a fine line between drinking wine and squashing grapes in this business,” coach Mike Tomlin said.
The Steelers will take a 5-3 record into the second half of the season. They are the only team with a winning record in the division, with Baltimore stumbling to a 3-5 record, Cincinnati losing a last-second heartbreaker to Chicago on Sunday to fall to 3-6 and Cleveland bringing up the rear at 2-6.
The victory against Indianapolis came a week after the Steelers blew a 16-7 halftime lead and gave up 28 second-half points to the Packers, prompting defensive captain Cameron Heyward to question the way the team responded to adversity.
“I think from everybody’s standpoint there was fight from the entire group,” Heyward said after the Steelers held the Colts 14 points below their season average. “Collectively, we all have to be responsible, and we all have to play with a lot of energy. I loved the energy I saw today.”
The key for the Steelers will be carrying the momentum over into the second half, starting next Sunday when they play the Los Angeles Chargers on the road. The Steelers still have two games remaining with Baltimore and one apiece against Cincinnati and Cleveland.
For the second year in a row, they control their playoff fate.
Last year, the Steelers had a chance to win the division when they started 10-3. They lost four in a row to finish the season, then were ousted from the playoffs by the Ravens in the wild-card round.
“It’s the NFL; it’s never going to be perfect,” linebacker Patrick Queen said. “This is the right direction to go in. We have to build off this.”
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
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