A.J. Brown Runs Wild; Steelers Bashed by Eagles, 35-13

PHILADELPHIA — If something stopped A.J. Brown in Philadelphia on Sunday, it might have been a long line for cheesesteaks or a crowd gathering for a Philadelphia Phillies World Series game on Monday. 

The traffic was especially bad in South Philadelphia on Sunday, so that could have slowed him up.

But the Pittsburgh Steelers defense didn’t seem provide much in the way of resistance for the Eagles star wide receiver.

Brown scored three touchdowns, all in the first half, as the Eagles raced away to an early lead and never looked back for a 35-13 win. Brown finished the game with six catches for 156 yards and the three scores.

Brown was Philly quarterback Jalen Hurts’ favored target, but he found lots of success wherever he threw the ball. Dallas Goedert had six catches and DeVonta Smith had four. Zach Pascal had just two, but they went for 57 yards. Hurts completed 19 of 28 for 285 yards and four touchdowns, as the Pittsburgh secondary was shredded.

Brown’s first touchdown came when the beat Minkah Fitzpatrick to the ball in double coverage. The second two came via single-coverage success against Ahkello Witherspoon. The Steelers got better results against Brown in the second half after benching Witherspoon for James Pierre, but by then, then game was largely out of hand.

The Steelers offense continued its season-long struggles. The Steelers got a first-quarter touchdown on a fourth-down trick play, with wide receiver Chase Claypool throwing to fullback Derek Watt.

The rest of the offensive output consisted of two Nick Sciba field goals. The rookie was called into service because Chris Boswell missed the game with a groin injury.

Kenny Pickett finished 25 of 38 for 191, and turned the ball over twice, with one interception and one fumble. Pickett was sacked six times and hit 11 times, as the Pittsburgh offensive line had a long day against a talented Philadelphia front.

The Steelers did get some room to run, with rookie Jaylen Warren leading the way with six carries for 50 yards. Najee Harris had eight rushes for 32 yards and Pickett ran seven times for 37,

But the Steelers trailed by multiple scores from the second quarter on, and running the ball was largely not a way to get back into the game.

The Steelers offense was also heavily beset by penalties in the game. As a team, Pittsburgh was penalized nine times for 60 yards in the contest, with the majority of those coming on offense.

The Eagles remain the NFL’s final undefeated team at 7-0. The Steelers head into their idle week at 2-5.