Seahawks fall to Steelers in 23-20 overtime heartbreaker

Damn.

Geno Smith got the start for the injured Russell Wilson, but sadly for the second week in a row a game-winning opportunity for him ended in a turnover. Last week it was an unfortunate interception, this week it’s a T.J. Watt strip sack in overtime as the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-3) edged out the Seattle Seahawks (2-4) by a score of 23-20 in overtime. Two overtime games, two overtime losses for Seattle.

Smith threw for a touchdown and didn’t have a turnover until that play, but overall the offense struggled mightily except the 3rd quarter, which saw Peteball take over and Alex Collins cross 100 yards rushing and score a touchdown on an excellent day for him.

The defense didn’t play poorly but certainly Pittsburgh’s lackluster offense flattered them with bad execution. Ben Roethlisberger threw for a touchdown and was not sacked and rarely pressured. He did have a hilarious fumble which Seattle failed to capitalize on, and that proved vital in the end of this crazy game.

Lastly, all the best to Darrell Taylor after suffering a potentially serious neck injury late in the 4th quarter, which caused the game to be stopped and Taylor was taken to a nearby hospital.

1st Half

Do you like punts? I know you do. Because that’s all we got in the 1st quarter. The Steelers and Seahawks traded three-and-outs on their respective opening possessions. Pittsburhg got one first down on its next series before punting, and the Seahawks responded by getting to the Steelers 38 (thanks to a couple of Alex Collins runs, a big catch-and-run by Travis Homer and a 12-yard completion to Penny Hart from Geno Smith) but ultimately punted. Rookie cornerback Tre Brown was tested a couple of times by Ben Roethlisberger and he did his job, including on a 3rd down deep shot to Diontae Johnson.

Pittsburgh got on the board first with an 8-play, 54-yard drive that came after a shanked punt by Michael Dickson. Ben Roethlisberger almost had a pass intercepted by Jamal Adams or Darrell Taylor but neither of them could get the ball near the goal line. On the next snap, Big Ben found Najee Harris who beat Benson Mayowa (!!!) in coverage. 7-0 Steelers.

Another punt by the Seahawks and another touchdown by the Steelers. Roethlisberger handed it off to Eric Ebron for the one-yard jet sweep score on 3rd and goal to wrap up the 1st half scoring. 14-0 Steelers.

2nd Half

Right out of halftime, Shane Waldron obviously obliged Pete Carroll’s want of running the ball more. They had a 10-play, 75-yard drive featuring 9 rushes and one pass. Alex Collins had 8 carries for 58 yards and the 2-yard rushing touchdown to get Seattle on the board. 14-7 Steelers.

Pittsburgh got a crucial 3rd down and 4 conversion to keep their first 2nd half possession going. Big Ben threw a long-ish ball to Diontae Johnson to get the Steelers into the red zone. A penalty pretty much killed the drive and they settled for a field goal. 17-7 Steelers.

Back came the Seahawks with a 6-play, 60-yard drive that included a 41-yard catch and tackle-breaking rumble by Gerald Everett. His TE teammate Will Dissly got into the end zone two plays later. 17-14 Steelers.

Just like that, in the blink of an eye the Seahawks forced a three-and-out. Darrell Taylor with the pressure that forced an errant throw which D.J. Reed broke up. A shanked punt led to a short field for the Seahawks offense, and the run game continued to gash the Steelers defense. Travis Homer had a 20+ yard scamper on 3rd and 7 to put Seattle in the red zone. A 3rd down sack unfortunately ended the drive but Jason Myers tied it up from 40. 17-17 with 12:59 left.

A total self-forced fumble by Ben Roethlisberger resulted in the first turnover of the night. What the hell happened here?! Pete Carroll challenged this after it was called incomplete for some reason. They reversed it and the Seahawks recovered at Pittsburgh’s 35.

Unfortunately a huge Alex Collins run was called back due to a suspect holding against Jamarco Jones. This put them out of field goal range and they ended up punting for a touchback. Thankfully the Steelers could only get one first down and had to punt it away again. Not thankfully, Seattle went a pitiful three-and-out again.

With 3:10 to go, Najee Harris picked up a first down but in the middle of it all Darrell Taylor, by far the Seahawks’ best defensive player on the evening, suffered a neck injury running into Al Woods. He was carted off the field with the whole team surrounding him. The game was paused for an extended period as they put Taylor on a stretcher.

Returning to the game, the Steelers gave the Seahawks a taste of their own medicine by running the ball with rookie first-rounder Najee Harris. They were in field goal range at the two-minute warning. Out of the two-minute warning, a Chase Claypool offensive pass interference knocked the Steelers out of FG range. Jamal Adams dropped a gimme interception that was giftwrapped to him on his birthday. On 3rd and 15, Big Ben checked it down to Harris who was short of first down yardage. Chris Boswell for the go-ahead field goal from 52 out and 1:35 to go... 20-17 Steelers with 1:30 left.

Smith on 1st and 10 from his own 25... Dissly gains 7 yards on the out route. First down run for Dallas close to his own 40. Checkdown to Dallas for 7 more. Timeout with :52 left. Dallas short of the first down I think? Hurry up! Hurry up! They gave him the first down. Or not. Metcalf with a catch on the sidelines and a first down! Another Dallas checkdown and he loses the ball but falls on it in field goal range. Just :18 left and Seattle with no timeouts left. A 2nd and 3 at the PIT 35, Metcalf catches and DOES NOT GO OUT OF BOUNDS! AND FUMBLES! Swain recovers and they have to spike it... clock runs out game over. Or is it?! There should be one second left. They reviewed the play to see if Metcalf caught it and clearly did so. They put :03 on the clock and now the Seahawks have enough time to spike it.

Jason Myers for the tie... 43 yards out... 20-20. OVERTIME!

Overtime

Seahawks won the coin toss and started at the 27. Homer stuffed for just a yard. Catch by Lockett near midfield. Dallas gets blown up for a loss of four on the next play. A checkdown to Dallas into Steeler territory and a huge 3rd and 4 on deck. And Watt sacks Smith after beating Brandon Shell like a drum.

Pittsburgh gets it back at their own 20 and Harris picks up 4. Freiermuth with a short catch and it’s 3rd and short. WHAT A STOP BY TRE BROWN! Stuffing Ray-Ray MacLeod. Seahawks get it back at their own 15. And Geno gets strip-sacked and the Steelers recover. TJ Watt is inevitable. They’ll kick the winning field goal after two kneeldowns. Boswell wins it. 23-20 Steelers FINAL.

Seahawks injury report

RT Brandon Shell was rolled up on late in the 1st half, missed a kneeldown series, but returned to start the 2nd half.

CB Sidney Jones suffered a chest injury in the 3rd quarter on a collision with Jamal Adams. He was replaced by rookie CB Tre Brown.

LG Damien Lewis had a shoulder injury and was replaced by Jamarco Jones.

WR Freddie Swain limped off the field after a failed 3rd down screen.

DE/LB Darrell Taylor was injured late in the 4th quarter. He was carted off and hospitalized. All the best to him after a potential serious neck injury.

Next week’s opponent

Two straight home games for the Seahawks. We’ll see them in action on Monday Night Football against the New Orleans Saints (3-2, bye week in Week 6) on October 25th at 5:15 PM PT on ESPN.