PITTSBURGH — Kenny Pickett finally got his mojo back, hooking up with George Pickens to help the Pittsburgh Steelers steal a victory from the Baltimore Ravens, 17-10 on Sunday.
The Steelers’ second-year quarterback finally looked like the player he did in his rookie season, when he underwhelmed statistically but engineering several late game-winning drives.
He hooked up with his favorite co-conspirator in Pickenss for a game-breaking 41-yard touchdown with just over one minute to play in the fourth quarter.
The Steelers defense continued its revival, when Alex Highsmith stripped Lamar Jackson on a sack and T.J. Watt recovered to secure the victory.
After allowing 1o points on the game’s first three possessions, the Steelers defense tightened significantly, stopping Jackson and the Ravens on eight consecutive drives.
Included in that stretch was a forced fumble by Larry Ogunjobi that was recoeverd by Damontae Kazee, and a sequence of two huge plays that turned the tide in the fourth quarter.
After stopping the Ravens on the third down with the Steelers trailing 10-3, special teams captain Miles Killebrew blocked a Jordan Stout punt from near his own end zone, with the ball sliding out of bounds just before it could be recovered by Rodney Williams. The safety made it 10-5, and the Steelers took the ensuing possession down for a field goal to make it 10-8.
Another defensive stop had the Steelers looking like they would get a chance for a go-ahead drive, but Gunner Olszewski fumbled the punt return, setting the Ravens up with a first and goal at the Pittsburgh 7-yard line.
Not only did they not get a touchdown, they didn’t score at all, when Joey Porter Jr. made his first career interception on a Jackson pass intended for Odell Beckham Jr. in the end zone.
That was when Pickett finally got the Steelers’ offense going. Pickett led an eight-play, 80-yard drive capped by the long score to Pickens.
Pickett finished 18 of 32 for 224 yards and did not turn the ball over. Pickens was his favorite target, grabbing six for 130 yards. On the ground, Najee Harris had 14 carries for 37 yards and Jaylen Warren had a hard-running 40 yards on nine runs.
Pittsburgh was out-gained, 317-217, but the big plays late turned the tide for the team.The Steelers are now 3-2 and move into first place in the AFC North as they enter their bye week.