WHAT WENT RIGHT
* With 96 seconds left in the first quarter and the Steelers having a first down at their 17-yard line, Ben Roethlisberger was a little extra careful and it paid off. From a multiple tight end set, Roethlisberger had Antonio Brown open deep down the middle, behind both D.J. Hayden and Charles Woodson, and he made sure not to overthrow him this time. The gain was for 59 yards, and gave the Steelers a first down at the Oakland 24-yard line.

• Two plays later on that same possession, Roethlisberger converted a third-and-9 with an 11-yard pass to Brown, and then two plays later DeAngelo burst into the end zone for a touchdown that became an 11-7 lead when Roethlisberger passed to Williams for the two-point conversion.

• The Steelers offense would score 10 points in the final six minutes of the second quarter. On a nine-play, 78-yard drive for a touchdown, Antonio Brown caught two passes for 46 yards and ran a revers for another 6 yards to set up a first down at the Oakland 12-yard line. From there, DeAngelo Williams carried four straight times for the score.

• The Steelers defense recorded a three-and-out after the ensuing kickoff, and combined with the use of their last two timeouts, the Raiders had to punt from their 20-yard line. Two passes to Antonio Brown gained 28 yards, and Chris Boswell came on to kick a 38-yard field goal for a 21-14 halftime lead. It made Boswell 10-for-10 in field goals.

• Two plays after the third quarter interception by Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers defense got it back. On a run by Latavius Murray around the right side, Mike Mitchell came up from his safety spot and delivered the hit that knocked the ball loose, and Jarvis Jones came out of the pile with the recovery at the Steelers' 25-yard line.

• Martavis Bryant had been having a difficult afternoon, but he redeemed himself in a big way early in the fourth quarter. On a first-and-10 from the Oakland 14-yard line in a game that was tied, 21-21, Ben Roethlisberger threw a sideline screen pass to Bryant, who got away from three different Raiders defenders and used a block by Jesse James to get into the end zone for a touchdown.

• On the ensuing kickoff, Roosevelt Nix delivered a big hit on Taiwan Jones and forced a fumble that Anthony Chickillo recovered at the Raiders 6-yard line. Two plays later, Roethlisberger found rookie tight end Jesse James all alone in the back of the end zone for his first NFL touchdown, one that upped the Steelers lead to 35-21.

WHAT WENT WRONG
* After winning the coin toss, the Steelers saw their first possession ruined by dropping the ball. Jacoby Jones dropped the opening kickoff, then Martavis Bryant dropped a pass on the first play from scrimmage. A quick pass to DeAngelo Williams that turned into a 33-yard gain converted the first third down, but on the next third down situation, Darrius Heyward-Bey dropped a pass at the Oakland 29-yard line that would have been good for a first down. Electing to go for it on fourth-and-4, cornerback David Amerson deflected a pass intended for Antonio Brown to turn the ball over on downs to the Raiders.

• The Raiders had no such issues on their opening possession, and needed just three plays to take a 7-0 lead. After an incomplete pass on first down, Latavius Murray burst up the middle for 44 yards to the Pittsburgh 22-yard line. On the next play, Derek Carr hit Michael Crabtree in between cornerback Ross Cockrell and safety Mike Mitchell for the touchdown.

• The first quarter turned out to be one of near misses for the Steelers offense. There were the drops on the first series; on the second, Ben Roethlisberger overthrew an open Antonio Brown on a third-and-3 from the Pittsburgh 47-yard line; and on the third series, Roethlisberger couldn't connect with Markus Wheaton on a third-and-4 from the Raiders 16-yard line, which led to a 34-yard field goal by Chris Boswell.

• With a 21-14 lead, the Steelers had an opportunity to extend the lead early in the second half. A short sideline pass from Derek Carr to Latavius Murray became a fumble when Ryan Shazier separated him from the football, but in the process of scooping the ball Mike Mitchell stepped out of bounds and didn't re-establish himself back in bounds. Instead of a turnover, the ball stayed in Oakland's possession, and the Raiders were able to punt.

• It was another near miss for the Steelers on the possession that followed the punt, as once again Ben Roethlisberger and a receiver weren't on the same page. On a third-and-7 from the Oakland 43-yard line, Roethlisberger couldn't connect with Darrius Heyward-Bey on a play in which the ball either was thrown behind the receiver, or the receiver kept running when he should've settled in the zone.

• Bad things can happen in pairs. With the score tied, 21-21, Ben Roethlisberger laid out a perfect pass to Martavis Bryant on a second-and-13 from the Pittsburgh 14-yard line. Bryant dropped the ball at the Oakland 42-yard line. On the next play, Roethlisberger's pass for Antonio Brown along the left side line was intercepted by cornerback David Amerson at the Steelers 32-yard line.

• Chris Boswell made quite a splash in the NFL. He was successful on his first 10 field goal attempts and his kickoffs were consistently deep enough to be difficult to return. But in a short span of the game against the Raiders, Boswell was wide left on a 41-yard field goal, and then after the touchdown that extended the Steelers' lead to 35-21, his kickoff went out of bounds to give Oakland possession at their 40-yard line. The Raiders needed four plays from there to score the touchdown that cut the lead to 35-28 with 9:32 remaining in the fourth quarter.