COIN TOSS: Steelers call tails. It's tails. Steelers elect to defer. The Chargers get the football first.
8:25 p.m. – What Went Right: After returning the kickoff to the 25-yard line, the Chargers gained 19 yards on their first offense play on a pass from Philip Rivers to tight end Hunter Henry. After that though, it was a three-and-out, and following the punt the Steelers began their opening possession at their 21-yard line.
8:30 p.m. – What Went Wrong: Not an auspicious start for the Steelers offense. Devlin Hodges underthrew JuJu Smith Schuster down the left sideline on first down; James Conner lost 1 yard; and then a third down pass to Vance McDonald gained 5 and brought on Jordan Berry. His punt traveled 59 yards and Desmond King made the fair catch at the Chargers 21-yard line.
8:35 p.m. – What Went Right: Two plays after Jordan Berry's punt, the Steelers were on the scoreboard thanks to their defense. On second-and-10 from the 21-yard line, Philip Rivers threw a swing pass to Melvin Gordon that was a lateral, and when Gordon didn't catch the ball, Devin Bush scooped it up at the 9-yard line and ran it in for the touchdown that gave the Steelers a 7-0 lead with 10:51 left in the first quarter.
8:40 p.m. – What Went Right: The defense recorded its second takeaway of the game, and Devin Bush again was involved. A Philip Rivers pass was batted at the line by Tyson Alualu and Bush intercepted the ball to give the offense possession at the Chargers 40-yard line. Seven plays later – all touches by James Conner – the Steelers had a 14-0 lead thanks to a 13-yard run by Conner with 4:29 left in the first quarter.
8:55 p.m. – What Went Right: The Chargers again managed a single first down on a possession before being forced to punt, and the Steelers took over at their own 14-yard line following the punt and the fair catch by Ryan Switzer. The piece of bad news was that Stephon Tuitt sustained a pectoral injury on the previous defensive series, and his return to the game was listed as questionable.
9:11 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers increased their lead to 21-0 on a 26-yard swing pass that James Conner carried 26 yards for the touchdown to cap a 14-play drive that covered 86 yards and ate up 9:09 of game time. On the drive, the Steelers were 3-for-3 on third downs, including the touchdown play. There was 6:34 remaining in the first half.
9:28 p.m. – What Went Right: The Chargers started at their own 14-yard line after Chris Boswell's kickoff, and they moved the ball into position for Chase McLaughlin to attempt a 33-yard field goal. His attempt hit the left upright, and the Steelers took possession at their 33-yard line with 32 seconds left in the first half.
10 p.m. – What Went Right: Yes, the Steelers ended up settling for a red zone field goal after having a first-and-goal from the 2-yard line, but they marched 73 yards in 13 plays and ate up 6:48 of clock time, and most of their yardage came via the running game. Also, it should be noted that Devlin Hodges did a very nice job of fielding some errant snaps from Maurkice Pouncey while in the shotgun formation. The Steelers led, 24-0, with 8:12 remaining in the third quarter.
10:06 p.m. – What Went Right: The Chargers first possession was a three-and-out, with T.J. Watt getting in Philip Rivers' face and batting down his attempted pass on third-and-3. After the punt, the Steelers started their second possession of the second half from their 26-yard line.
10:15 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Steelers appeared to have recovered a muffed punt at the Chargers 8-yard line with 2:59 remaining in the third quarter, but a review ruled that Justin Layne stripped the ball out of Desmond King's hands after King had called for a fair catch. The Chargers were awarded the ball at the spot of Layne's recovery.
10:29 p.m. – What Went Right: The possession ended with the field goal that ruined the Steelers' shutout, but the defense stiffened after the Chargers moved to a first down at the Pittsburgh 16-yard line. A sack by Anthony Chickillo on second down, and Joe Haden's pass defensed on third down had the Chargers settle for the field goal that made it, 24-3, with 14 minutes remaining.
10:36 p.m. – What Went Wrong: It was his first bad decision of the night, and it resulted in a turnover. With a first down at midfield, Devlin Hodges tried to go down the field to Johnny Holton, but his pass was intercepted by Rayshawn Jenkins, and after a 7-yard return, the Chargers took over at their 30-yard line with 10:36 remaining.
10:47 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Chargers cut further into the Steelers lead with a 10-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Hunter Henry. On the play, back judge Brad Freeman was standing right there, less than 1 yard from the play in the back of the end zone, and he immediately ruled the pass incomplete. But then after a conference, the ruling on the field was changed to a touchdown. It was 24-10 with nearly seven minutes remaining.
11:04 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Chargers drove 79 yards in eight plays to cut into the Steelers lead again, and they capped it with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Hunter Henry. There was 1:29 remaining in the fourth quarter.
11:11 p.m. – What Went Right: Two big plays by special teams. First, Cam Sutton recovered the attempted onside kick following San Diego's second touchdown, and then on fourth-and-1, Jordan Berry's punt was downed at the 1-yard line by Johnny Holton. On San Diego's second offensive play, Cam Sutton intercepted Philip Rivers with 41 seconds left and the Chargers were out of timeouts.
FINAL SCORE: Steelers 24, Chargers 17
