Five days after joining the Steelers, Mike Williams scored the game-winning touchdown as Pittsburgh recorded a 28-27 win over the Washington Commanders.
Williams' 32-yard touchdown grab came on a third-and-9 play with 2:22 left. It was the first reception of the day for Williams, who was traded from the Jets to the Steelers prior to Tuesday's trade deadline. His catch was the third of three touchdown passes on the day by Russell Wilson, who made a bevy of big plays despite completing only half of his 28 pass attempts.
Like Wilson, Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels only completed half of his 34 attempts. Daniels did have success getting the ball to Terry McLaurin, whose 54-yard catch early in the second half set up the second of Austin Ekeler's two touchdown runs that extended Washington's lead to 24-14. But the Commanders defense struggled to stop Wilson, wideout George Pickens and the rest of Pittsburgh's offense when it mattered most.
The Steelers have now won four straight and remain in sole possession of first place in the AFC North. The Commanders are now 7-3 and fall out of first place in the NFC East, pending the Eagles' game against the Cowboys.
Here's a closer look at how Pittsburgh pulled off the upset.
It wasn't pretty, but it was a gritty win for Mike Tomlin's team. There were several reasons why the Steelers won, with one of the biggest reasons being who was under center.
Wilson struggled with his accuracy for most of the game, but as noted above, he and his teammates stepped up and delivered when it was most needed. After the Commanders scored to make it a 10-point game, Wilson responded by firing completions of 26 yards to Jaylen Warren and 34 yards to Pickens to set up Najee Harris' 1-yard touchdown run.
On his game-winning touchdown pass, Wilson heaved the ball into the sky as the Commanders brought the house. But his pass was thrown on the money to Williams, who beat single coverage while showing why the Steelers gave the Jets a fifth-round pick to acquire him. Wilson iced the game moments later by getting the Commanders to draw offsides on a fourth-and-1. The penalty allowed the Steelers to kill the last minute of game clock while preventing Daniels another shot with the ball.
Speaking of mistakes, both teams made plenty, but the Steelers did a better job overcoming theirs. The Steelers committed two turnovers: an interception from Wilson and a fumble by Warren that wiped out a possible scoring drive. The Steelers' defense stepped up in both instances, forcing punts while limiting the damage. Specifically, Pittsburgh then recorded the first fourth down stop of the year against Washington's offense (who had been 11 of 11 on fourth down conversions) when Minkah Fitzpatrick and Damontae Kazee stopped Zach Ertz just short of the sticks with 1:28 left.
Pittsburgh also survived an unsuccessful fake punt attempt in the first half that set up Washington's first touchdown. Washington later "returned" the favor with a muffed punt return that set up the Steelers' second touchdown.
It was odd game in that neither offense developed a consistent rhythm despite the 55 points scored. In Washington's case, Daniels and Co. especially struggled to get into a groove, as 10 of their 27 points were the result of a short field.
A big difference between the two teams was the yards gained on the ground. While Warren and Harris led a Steelers ground game that churned out 140 yards on 43 carries, the Commanders ran for just 60 yards on 22 carries. Washington's struggles to run the ball put too much of the game on Daniels' shoulders while often putting him in obvious passing situations. It also contributed to the Steelers controlling the ball for over 36 minutes.
Daniels did respond with some big plays, but he never found the end zone and was sacked three times in the second half as Pittsburgh's pass rush eventually got home after being contained in the first half. Daniels gained just 5 yards on 3 carries and was never a factor on the ground.
Defensively, the Commanders failed to make the Steelers one-dimensional. They also struggled to stop Pickens, who caught five passes for 91 yards that included his balletic first quarter touchdown that opened the scoring.
In defeat, Washington received big days from McLaurin (113 yards on five catches), defensive back Jeremy Chinn (13 tackles in addition to an interception and a fumble recovery), Dante Fowler Jr. (two sacks) and Zane Gonzalez, the team's recently acquired kicker who made each of his field goal attempts.
Wilson's touchdown pass to Williams changed game's trajectory while also giving the visiting Steelers the lead for good. On the play, Wilson stared down Washington's hard-charging pass rush before throwing an accurate ball to Williams, who made an equally impressive over-the-shoulder catch.
"I've seen it a few times on highlight shows. It's a little better in person, believe me." -- Tomlin on Wilson's signature deep ball that resulted in the game-winning score
The Commanders will travel to Philadelphia on Thursday night for a huge matchup between the NFC East's top teams. The Steelers will return to Pittsburgh for a game against the Ravens that will determine which team will be first place in the AFC North this time next week.
The Steelers successfully baited Washington to jump offsides on fourth-and-1. The Steelers' most impressive win yet, and while they lost, the Commanders are still 7-3, but they are now behind the Eagles in the NFC East standings.
The Commanders came up just short on fourth-and-11 as Zach Ertz is tackled by Minkah Fitzpatrick just short of the sticks. The officials are reviewing the spot, but even if the Steelers do get it back with 1:18 left, the Commanders can use each of their three timeouts. It looks like Ertz is literally inches short of the first.
Alex Highsmith throws helmet off after injuring his ankle while pressuring Jayden Daniels. Highsmith's ankle twisted. He's leaving the field but is not putting any pressure on his left leg.
Mike Williams' first catch as a Steeler is a 32-yard TD catch on a third-and-9 play. That was Wilson's only option on the play as the Commanders brought the house. Commanders have 2:22 to respond.
Jaylen Warren was close to a TD, but safety Quan Martin jarred the ball loose just before Warren fell down. The fumble was scooped up by Jeremy Chinn, who now has two turnovers today in addition to his INT earlier.
Najee Harris appears to be injured after the Commanders stopped him on third-and-1. He tried to leave the field under his own power but went back down. Harris is in his fourth season and has never missed a game due to an injury, an incredible run of durability.
Warren picks up first down on fourth-and-1 with Jaylen Warren. Steelers are near midfield with 10 minutes left.
Wilson overthrows Pickens and is picked off by Jeremy Chinn. It was Wilson's first pick in last 179 pass attempts. Chinn's 40-yard returned is wiped out, though, as the officials determine that Pickens touched Chinn on Washington's 26.
McLaurin just caught a 28-yard dime as the Commanders are into Steelers territory. McLaurin has emphatically won his one-on-one battle vs. Porter.
Washington didn't move the ball much, but it did get the necessary FG to get Gonzalez in range to hit his second FG of the day, giving Commanders a 27-21 lead with 2:51 left in the third.
It's an odd thing to say with it being a 27-21 game, but neither team has really gotten into a consistent offensive groove. It's mostly been big plays and special teams setting up scores so far.
Wilson is now 9 of 20 after misfiring on another third-and-long to Calvin Austin deep downfield. A holding call also hurt the Steelers, who just had a bad punt, giving the Commanders the ball on Pittsburgh's 42.
Penalties on both sides of the ball have killed the Steelers so far, along with their lack of weapons at receiver. Just no consistent flow offensively.
Wilson hits Warren for 26 and Pickens for 34 to set up Najee Harris' short TD run, making a 24-21 Commanders lead midway through the third quarter. Pickens' catch and carry was impressive. He's not known for his tackle-breaking ability but he showed that ability on this play.
Daniels, conservative during the first half, lets it loose on the first drive of the second half with a 54-yard completion to Terry McLaurin, who got the majority of those yards after breaking Minkah Fitzpatrick's tackle attempt. The catch helped set up Jeremy McNichols TD to make it a 24-14 game in Washington's favor.
Commanders have scored 17 unanswered points.
Score: Commanders 17-14
First downs: Commanders 13-9
Third down: Commanders 3-7, Steelers 2-7
Total yards: Commanders 113-97
TOP: Steelers 16:39
Daniels: 9/16, 78 yards, 1 sack
Wilson: 7/15, 48 yards, 2 TD, 1 sack
Ekeler: 12 carries, 39 yards, 2 TD
Pickens: 2 catches (3 targets), 21 yards, 1 TD
Warren: 5 carries, 25 yards; Harris 8 carries, 20 yards
Daniels: 1 carry, 4 yards
Steelers: 57 yards on 17 carries
Commanders: 43 yards on 12 carries
Ekeler's second TD of the game gives Washington a 17-14 lead just before halftime. The score was set up by Luke McCaffrey's 23-yard grab and a third penalty called against Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr.
Dyanmi Brown dropped a TD pass earlier in the drive, bur the DPI on Porter bails him out. Both teams are 2-2 today in the red zone. That was a 15-play, 94-yard drive.
The Commanders are getting Daniels in a rhythm with short, safe passes as Washington has crossed midfield at the 2-minute warning. Daniels has specifically had success throwing short to veteran TE Zach Ertz.
Wilson hasn't run a ton since replacing Fields, but he did so just now on a 6-yard run on a third-and-4 play, giving the Steelers a fresh set of downs near midfield.
Pittsburgh punts, though, after Wilson misfires on a deep pass to Calvin Austin III on third-and-10. Wilson just 7 of 15 so far, that'll need to improve if the Steelers are going to improve their odds of winning.
New Commanders kicker Zane Gonzalez drills a 48-yard FG, trimming the Steelers' lead to 14-10 midway through the third quarter. The drive's big play was a DPI on Joey Porter Jr. Tackles for losses on consecutive plays by Steelers FA acquisitions Patrick Queen and DeShon Elliott forced the Commanders to settle for a FG.
Wilson hasn't been terribly sharp today, but he was on a short TD pass to Pat Freiermuth that gives Pittsburgh a 14-7 lead. Freiermuth was a red zone scoring machine as a rookie (Ben Roethlisberger's last year) and the thought was Wilson's presence would open up more scoring chances for the Steelers' veteran TE.
Like the Commanders, the Steelers parlay a special teams mistake into a TD.
We have our second SPE miscue of the half, this one a fumble by Olamide Zaccheaus that was recovered by Ben Skowronek at the Commanders' 14-yard-line. Steelers now +11 this year in the turnover ratio.
The Steelers' defense forced another Commanders put, giving their offense the ball as the first quarter ends. Commanders' inability to run the ball (5 yards on 5 carries) was a big issue for Washington during the first quarter.
The best offensive player on either side so far is Steelers running back Jaylen Warren, who is up to 24 yards on three carries after finishing the first quarter with a 9-yard run. The Commanders had just three more yards (27) than Warren did in the first quarter.
Pittsburgh has punted on three of its first four drives. Najee Harris has been OK on the ground, but Wilson has struggled so far sans his TD pass to Pickens. He wasn't on the same page with Van Jefferson on a downfield, sideline pass on the Steelers' latest third down.
Austin Ekeler scores a TD as the Commanders capitalize on the short field. Nice lead block by Sam Cosmi on the TD run. Ekeler's numbers are down this year, but he's still averaging 5.6 YPG and obviously still has a nose for the end zone.
The Steelers try a fake punt deep deep in their own territory, with S Miles Killebrew taking the snap and throwing a good pass to a wide open CB James Pierre on the far sideline. Pierre dropped the ball, though, and the Commanders take over at the Steelers' 16.
Not sure at all why the Steelers tried that. It almost worked, but why try it this deep in your own territory with the defense playing good?
George Pickens adds to his list of highlight reel grabs with his 16-yard TD grab to open the scoring in Washington. Pickens was falling down as he pulled down Russell Wilson's pass in the end zone.
TD caps off a 7-play, 70-yard drive that was aided by two penalties against the Commanders' defense. A 12-yard run by Jaylen Warren was the drive's only other play of more than 10 yards.
Steelers punt on opening drive after Cordarrelle Patterson was stuffed a yard short of the first down on third-and-2. The Commanders punted after Jayden Daniels misfired on a third-and-3 attempt. Looked like both teams were content feeling each other out on that drive.
Will be interesting to see how long both offenses decide to be conservative before getting risky.
Washington will without both of its starting offensive tackles today, so backups Brandon Coleman and Trent Scott will be going up against Steelers OLB's Alex Highsmith and T.J. Watt, respectively.
