The highs and lows of the Steelers second preseason game of 2019 vs. the Kansas City Chiefs.
COIN TOSS: Chiefs call heads. It's heads. Chiefs elect to defer. Steelers get the ball.
8:33 p.m. – What Went Wrong: After a one-hour delay at the start of the game as lightning moved through the area, the Steelers took the opening kickoff and went three-and-out. After a pair of 4-yard runs by James Conner, Mason Rudolph's pass for JuJu Smith-Schuster was tipped away by CB Charvarius Ward.
8:43 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Steelers defense allowed one first down before forcing a Chiefs punt on Kansas City's opening possession, but the offense wasn't able to do much with the ball on its second opportunity. A 6-yard pass to James Conner followed a 5-yard pass to Vance McDonald for one first down, but on an ensuing third-and-7, Chuks Okorafor was beaten by Alex Okafor for a 5-yard sack of Mason Rudolph. The Chiefs took over at their own 25-yard line following the punt.
8:48 p.m. – What Went Right: On a second-and-10 from the Chiefs 41-yard line, Terrell Edmunds punched the ball loose from RB Carlos Hyde, and Sean Davis recovered at the Steelers 47-yard line with 7:41 remaining in the first quarter.
8:51 p.m. – What Went Wrong: On the first play following the takeaway, Mason Rudolph completed a short pass to Done Moncrief, but the ball was punched out by Herb Miller and recovered by Damien Wilson at the Pittsburgh 48-yard line.
8:54 p.m. – What Went Right: After their takeaway, the Chiefs went three-and-out when Bud Dupree sacked Chad Henne on a third-and-4. After the punt, the Steelers took possession at their own 8-yard line with 6:00 left in the first quarter.
9:22 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers took a 7-0 lead with a 14-play, 89-yard drive that consumed 8:06 of game time and ended with a 14-yard run by Jaylen Samuels for a touchdown. Things stated off slowly for the Steelers offense, with Al Villanueva flagged for holding on the possession's first play, but Mason Rudolph converted a third-and-11 from the 10-yard line with a 22-yard pass to James Washington. He converted another third-and-11 with a 13-yard laser to Xavier Grimble over the middle. If this game is to determine the team's backup quarterback for the season, Rudolph made a strong case for himself with this possession.
9:38 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Chiefs answered the Steelers long touchdown drive with one of their own, and Chad Henne's 17-yard pass to Mecole Hardman tied the game, 7-7, with 1:11 left in the first half. It was a 13-play, 81-yard drive that consumed 5:28 of game time, and it was made possible by two conversions of third-and-long situations. On a third-and-12 from the Chiefs 49-yard line, Henne completed a 27-yard pass to Marcus Kemp, and then the touchdown pass came on a third-and-15 from the Steelers 17-yard line.
9:53 p.m. – What Went Wrong: In the final 71 seconds of the first half, the Steelers seemed to get themselves in position to break the 7-7 tie. On a possession that started at the Pittsburgh 17-yard line, Josh Dobbs opened it with a 40-yard completion to James Washington, but that ended with a turnover on downs as a result of three successive incomplete passes by Dobbs. After the Steelers defense got the ball right back with a second takeaway of the half – Mike Hilton had a sack/strip of Chad Henne that was recovered by Tuzar Skipper at the Chiefs 38-yard line – Dobbs came on and hit Eli Rogers with a 25-yard pass that became a first-and-goal at the 6-yard line following a personal foul penalty on the tackle. But on the next play, Dobbs overthrew Diontae Johnson on a crossing route, and the pass was intercepted at the goal line by Charvarius Ward at the goal line.
10:17 p.m. – What Went Right: The Chiefs opened the second half with the football, and after stringing together a few first downs, the Steelers defense forced a punt thanks to an offensive holding penalty, a couple of incomplete passes by Kyle Shurmur, and then a nice pass rush on third-and-20 that had the quarterback scramble out of the pocket but only for a 2-yard game. Diontae Spencer took the Chiefs punt and returned it 38 yards to the Kansas City 47-yard line.
10:22 p.m. – What Went Wrong: The Steelers ran the ball three times for 9 yards on the series following Diontae Spencer's punt return, and on fourth down Benny Snell got more than enough for the first down, but the play was nullified by a holding penalty on tight end Kevin Rader. The Steelers punted, and the Chiefs took over at their own 13-yard line with 5:54 left in the third quarter.
10:45 p.m. – What Went Wrong: On a second-and-10 from the Kansas City 24-yard line, Josh Dobbs threw a 24-yard pass to Diontae Johnson, who fought his way through an attempted tackle by D'Montre Wade and into the end zone for an apparent touchdown. But Johnson was flagged for offensive pass interference, and the touchdown was nullified. Mike Tomlin challenged the play, but the ruling on the field was upheld.
10:50 p.m. – What Went Right: The Steelers managed to get something out of the possession after all when rookie free agent Matthew Wright made a 46-yard field goal to cap a drive of 12 plays that covered 32 yards and consumed 6:59 of game time. The Steelers led, 10-7, with 12:47 remaining in the fourth quarter.
11:06 p.m. – What Went Right: Replay took one 24-yard touchdown reception away from Diontae Johnson, but not a second one. His catch on a pass from Devlin Hodges capped a 10-play, 80-yard drive that consumed 5:48 of game time and extended the Steelers lead to 17-7 with 4:22 remaining in the fourth quarter. Johnson also caught a 14-yard pass on the drive, and Diontae Spencer raced 19 yards on a reverse.
11:17 p.m. – What Went Right: It was a 25-yard completion from Chase Litton to Blake Bell down the middle of the field, but Marcus Allen delivered a clean hit that forced a fumble that Tegray Scales recovered at the Steelers 7-yard line with two minutes remaining in a game the Steelers led, 17-7.
FINAL SCORE: Steelers 17, Chiefs 7
