PITTSBURGH – Two weeks ago, Mitch Trubisky stood by his locker to answer questions about being replaced by Kenny Pickett earlier this season. It was a dramatically different scene on Sunday when Trubisky took questions from the postgame podium after shaking hands with Tom Brady as the winning quarterback after a 20-18 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Trubisky was forced into Sunday’s game after Pickett suffered a concussion midway through the third quarter as the Steelers defended their 13-12 lead. After hitting Chase Claypool for a 6-yard score with 9:55 remaining, he went 20–12 the game. After the Buccaneers scored to make it a 2-point game with 4:38 remaining, two of his third-long completions from Trubisky to Claypool and a first down run by Trubisky to beat the Bengals would be the worst since defeating the Bengals. The Steelers’ first win has been secured. in week 1.
“Honestly, I feel good,” Trubisky said after helping the Steelers win their first game at home. “I am happy to win as a team and to show my teammates what I am capable of. The best part is seeing their joy and excitement after winning such a hard-fought battle.”
Trubisky showed no signs of rust after watching the last game on the sidelines. In the second third down conversion to Claypool on the final drive of the game, Trubisky advanced the route alongside Claypool.
Trubisky added that although he failed to get a practice rep that week playing with Claypool, he expected what would happen. It happens based on his mental rep during practice. “I wanted to stay aggressive. It was kind of like playing freely and everyone came together. It was fun.”
The ending of Sunday’s game was in stark contrast to the Steelers’ Week 2 loss to New England. In that game, a 17-14 loss, the Patriots held the ball for the final 6:33 of the rest of the game. The Pittsburgh offense did its job on Sunday as Trubisky and Co. didn’t give Brady another chance with the ball.
“We knew they were going to [step up]Steelers outside linebacker Alex Highsmith told CBS Sports after the game. Mitch stepped up and made a lot of great plays.chase, step up, nagy [Harris],all the people. I am very proud of this team. It was a true team win.”
It was indeed a team win for the Steelers, who played complementary football while receiving big plays in all three phases. His 55-yard shot from Chris Boswell helped give the Steelers his 10–6 halftime lead. Stephen Sims’ 89-yard return at the start of the second half set up Boswell’s second field goal as Pittsburgh extended their lead to seven points.
On defense, the Steelers consistently put pressure on Brady. Brady completed less than 50% of his first half pass attempts and only 60% of his throws in the game. The Buccaneers’ bruised Leonard Fournette was held to 63 yards on 21 carries, the Pittsburgh defense clinching the Steelers’ first inside his 20-yard line in each of his three outings. , and was overwhelmingly dominant in the red zone as he let Tampa Bay score his goal on the field.
What makes the Steelers’ defensive performance even more impressive is the fact that they played without both starting defensive players, All-Pro safety Minker Fitzpatrick and Defensive Player of the Year incumbent TJ Watt.
“coach [Mike] Tomlin always said Standard is Standard and I think a lot of guys have stepped up and played great games,” Highsmith said. We know his first five games of the year didn’t start the way we hoped.
“It’s a huge thing for us. We’re going to celebrate tonight, but we’re going to work on Monday and try to focus on Miami.”
But the Steelers’ biggest defensive play was submitted by 2019 first-round pick Devin Bush, who has been in trouble since returning from a serious knee injury near the end of the 2020 season. . Tampa Bay’s two-pointer on his try kept the lead as Bush deflected Brady’s pass attempt to Chris Godwin.
“Amazing,” said safety Tre Norwood of Bush’s play. “[He’s a] A hard worker and a key defenseman. Our main thing is to do our job. He made a very big stop for us to maintain that lead with that two-point conversion. “
They had runs, but the Steelers offense did the job of scoring enough points and making the necessary plays to bring the win. Pickett ended the Steelers’ 14-game drought of scoring no first quarter touchdowns when he fired a 6-yard touchdown pass to Harris to cap off Pittsburgh’s first scoring drive. Speaking of Harris, the Steelers Pro Bowl running back scored some positive runs in the Steelers’ last two drives.
Harris, who shares Trubisky’s role as the Steelers’ offensive captain, said nothing changed when Trubisky entered the huddle after Pickett suffered an injury.
“A mission is a mission,” Harris said. “I have to go win the game [regardless of who] There it is. We have good quarterbacks. we believe in both. We both know we can get the job done. “
As expected, the atmosphere in the Steelers’ locker room was much more positive after Sunday’s game than it was during the team’s first two games at home. The win comes at a pivotal time for Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh lost four games in a row and he was a double-digit underdog heading into Sunday’s game.
Harris said of the Steelers’ collective mindset, “We’re just building bricks. We know it was tough at first, but we believe in ourselves. We have to come together.” No. We are united, we hone it every day, and we go to practice.
“I think we’re turning something right now. I think we’re turning the page and we’re a great team. We just have to keep building the bricks and chasing it.”
The win also showed that the Pittsburgh offense is starting to find its way after a rocky first five games. With each of Pittsburgh’s top receivers contributing to the win, Claypool led the way with his 96 yards on his seven receptions.
“You know we’re really young when it comes to offense,” Harris said. “We have a lot of football to learn. Like I said, we stick together, hone it, put in more work, have extra meetings, watch practice. , we kind of turned a page, all the little things we didn’t do in the beginning. I think it paid off.”
The Steelers’ decision to acquire Trubisky has also paid off, although it may have taken a little longer than Pittsburgh fans had hoped. Sunday’s game showed that if Pickett has to sit out at any point in the future, the Steelers can win with Trubisky as long as the rest of Pittsburgh’s players keep their jobs.
“I can’t talk enough about Mitch stepping up right now,” Steelers defensive captain Cam Hayward said after the game. I needed a guy to do it and he did it today.You rally around the quarterbacks.We know it’s not an easy situation for either of the quarterbacks.But Mitch He showed great professionalism and played big when he needed to.”
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