NFL Game Recap - Pittsburgh at New Orleans
Sun Dec 23, 2018 4:25 PM EST

WAS
16
TEN
25
F
BAL
22
LAC
10
F
HOU
30
PHI
32
F
GB
44
NYJ
38
F OT
BUF
12
NE
24
F
JAX
17
MIA
7
F
NYG
27
IND
28
F
MIN
27
DET
9
F
TB
20
DAL
27
F
CIN
18
CLE
26
F
ATL
24
CAR
10
F
CHI
14
SF
9
F
LAR
31
ARI
9
F
PIT
28
NO
31
F
KC
31
SEA
38
F
DEN
14
OAK
27
F

Dec 23, 2018, 4:25 PM EST

Final

1

2

3

4

T

Pittsburgh (8-6-1)

3

11

14

0

28

New Orleans (13-2)

7

10

7

7

31

Saints narrowly upend Steelers and take top NFC seed
Sun Dec 23, 2018 10:27 PM

NEW ORLEANS (AP) Drew Brees found a receiver who hadn't played most of the season to sustain a late touchdown drive. The Saints' defense found a way to force two fumbles in the fourth quarter. And New Orleans' punt-return unit stopped a fake punt less than a yard short of a conversion that might have helped Pittsburgh protect a late lead.

Combine that with some good fortune on decisions by the officials, and it added up to a third straight fourth-quarter comeback for these charmed 2018 Saints, who'll finish the regular season as the best team in the NFC.

Brees capped a 326-yard passing performance with 2-yard touchdown toss to Michael Thomas with 1:25 left, Sheldon Rankins stripped JuJu Smith-Schuster in the final minute, and the Saints clinched the top seed in the NFC playoffs with a 31-28 victory over the Steelers that dealt a significant blow to Pittsburgh's playoff hopes.

"That's one thing these guys have done a good job with, coming up with plays when we needed it. We've won a lot of different ways this year," Saints coach Sean Payton said after New Orleans (13-2) reached 13 victories for the third time since he became coach in 2006. "I'm proud of this team. Man, they've showed a great resolve - dealt with injuries, dealt with all the adversity you might have in a long season."

Pittsburgh drove into potential tying field-goal range on its final drive, but Smith-Schuster fumbled while landing on Rankins after a short reception and linebacker Demario Davis recovered.

"One thing you know about this team is we're resilient," Rankins said.

Alvin Kamara gained 105 yards from scrimmage and ran for two touchdowns for New Orleans. Receiver Tedd Ginn Jr., playing for the first time since Week 4, caught a 25-yard pass on third-and-20 during the Saints' go-ahead series.

The late rally came after New Orleans kept it close with two crucial fourth-quarter stops. Safety Kurt Coleman forced Pittsburgh's first fourth-quarter turnover when he stripped Stevan Ridley and defensive end Alex Okafor recovered in Saints territory.

The Steelers briefly preserved their four-point lead when L.J. Fort blocked Wil Lutz's 50-yard field goal attempt with 6:16 left. But New Orleans quickly forced a fourth-and-5 and then stopped upback Roosevelt Nix a yard short of a first down when he took the snap on a fake punt with a little more than four minutes to go.

"I just wanted to be aggressive," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. "I like the play."

Ben Roethlisberger passed for 380 yards and three touchdowns for the Steelers (8-6-1), connecting 14 times with Antonio Brown for 185 yards and two touchdowns. Pittsburgh fell into second in the AFC North behind Baltimore and out of playoff position.

The Steelers could still win the division with a victory next week and a loss by the Ravens. Their path to a wild card is unlikely at best because it would require Indianapolis and Tennessee to tie. Pittsburgh's loss also clinched a playoff spot for the AFC South-leading Houston Texans.

"We're playing pretty good football, but it might not matter," Roethlisberger said. "Obviously we don't control our destiny anymore. We have to take care of business next week.

"You can be as skillful as you want on both sides of the ball and special teams, but there is still a small element of luck involved in football. A play here, a play there. If that's what it is, I don't know, but it's the game of football."

New Orleans went up 24-14 in the third quarter when Kamara dove over blockers at the line of scrimmage, capping a drive highlighted by his career-long 42-yard reception.

But the Steelers seized momentum back with a nine-play, 75 yard drive that included three passes to Brown, the last a 3-yard TD toss. Pittsburgh then took a 28-24 led with on its next drive, which again ended with a TD pass to Brown, who split double coverage by Coleman and Marshon Lattimore for his 20-yard score.

FLAG FORTUNE

The Saints' final scoring drive was aided by a pass interference call on fourth down, marking the third Saints touchdown drive of the game aided by such a call.

The first also came on a fourth-down play in the first quarter when Joe Haden placed his hand on Kamara's back on a pass that appeared overthrown.

"I don't know what they saw. I just tried to jump up and go get the ball," Haden said. "It's an offensive game. You can't touch these guys. ... I'm very frustrated."

A play later, Mark Ingram scored from a yard out for his franchise-record 50th rushing touchdown, surpassing Deuce McAllister's mark set in 2008.

KICKING STREAK

Before Lutz had a kick blocked, he made his franchise-record 26th straight field goal, surpassing the Saints mark set by Hall of Famer Morten Andersen during the 1992 and '93 seasons.

BEN AND BROWN

Roethlisberger now has 33 TDs passing, breaking his single-season mark of 32 set in 2007 and 2014.

Brown clinched a sixth straight season with at least 100 catches - making him the only NFL receiver to do so - and six straight seasons with 1,200 yards receiving. He also has 15 touchdown catches, surpassing his career best.

INJURIES

Steelers: Nickel cornerback Mike Hilton was examined in the blue tent by team medical staff but returned to action. ... Starting linebacker Vince Williams left the game in the second half.

Saints: Left tackle Terron Armstead left the game in the first half, returned to action a few series later, but then left the game again for good in the second half. After that, Andrus Peat moved to left tackle and rookie Will Clapp took over at left guard.

UP NEXT

Steelers: Host Cincinnati on Sunday, needing a win to have any hope of advancing to the playoffs.

Saints: Finish the season at home against Carolina on Sunday.

---

More AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP-NFL

Passing

PIT Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat Sk
B. Roethlisberger 50 33 66.0 3 380 49 0 108.8 3
NO Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat Sk
D. Brees 39 27 69.2 1 326 42 0 103.2 2
T. Hill 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0.0 0

Rushing

PIT Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
J. Samuels 12 53 4.4 16 0
R. Nix 1 4 4.0 4 0
NO Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
M. Ingram 11 35 3.2 8 1
A. Kamara 7 23 3.3 8 2

Receiving

PIT Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
A. Brown 14 185 13.2 28 2
J. Smith-Schuster 11 115 10.5 23 0
NO Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
M. Thomas 11 109 9.9 28 1
A. Kamara 4 82 20.5 42 0

Team Stats Comparison

PIT NO
Points For 28 31
Total Yards 429 370
Rushing Yards 65 57
Passing Yards 364 313
Passing Completions / Attempts 33/50 27/40
Turnovers 2 1
Interceptions Thrown 0 1
Fumbles - Lost 3/2 1/0
First Downs 26 24
Rushing Touchdowns 0 3
Passing Touchdowns 3 1
Penalties - Yards 6/79 9/91
Time Of Possession 31:20 28:40
Third Down Conversions/Attempts 6/13 6/12
Fourth Down Conversions/Attempts 1/2 0/0
Red Zone Conversions/Attempts 2/3 4/4
Sacks Against 3 2
Punts - Average Yards 2/49 3/47
Punt Returns - Average Yards/Punt Return 0/0 0/0
Kickoff Returns - Average Yards/Kickoff Return 2/10 0/0

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter PIT NO
PIT 09:28 FG Chris Boswell 49 yd FG 3 0
NO 12:03 TD Mark Ingram 1 yd run (Wil Lutz kick) 3 7
2nd Quarter PIT NO
PIT 00:55 FG Chris Boswell 30 yd FG 6 7
NO 04:38 TD Alvin Kamara 8 yd run (Wil Lutz kick) 6 14
PIT 14:20 TD Jaylen Samuels 3 yd pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Eli Rogers 2pt Pass from Ben Roethlisberger) 14 14
NO 14:58 FG Wil Lutz 43 yd FG 14 17
3rd Quarter PIT NO
NO 05:47 TD Alvin Kamara 1 yd run (Wil Lutz kick) 14 24
PIT 10:12 TD Antonio Brown 3 yd pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick) 21 24
PIT 13:58 TD Antonio Brown 20 yd pass from Ben Roethlisberger (Chris Boswell kick) 28 24
4th Quarter PIT NO
NO 13:35 TD Michael Thomas 2 yd pass from Drew Brees (Wil Lutz kick) 28 31

Game Information

Stadium: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
Attendance: 73,086
Game Time: 3:24
Weather: