Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers Edge Justin Fields, Bears on Chris Boswell's GW FG

The Pittsburgh Steelers are rolling.

Pittsburgh extended its winning streak to four in dramatic fashion with a 29-27 victory over the Chicago Bears in Monday's showdown at Heinz Field. Ben Roethlisberger led the victors into field-goal range in the final minute, and Chris Boswell drilled it from 40 yards out.

The Steelers improved to 5-3 and moved just one win behind the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North.

Late heroics from Justin Fields weren't enough for the Bears, who continue to trend in the wrong direction and fell to 3-6 with a fourth consecutive loss.

Making it more painful for Chicago, Cairo Santos' 65-yard field-goal attempt on the game's final play fell short.

---

Notable Player Stats 

• Ben Roethlisberger, QB, PIT: 21-of-30 passing for 205 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs
• Najee Harris, RB, PIT: 22 carries for 62 yards, 1 TD; 3 catches for 16 yards
• Pat Freiermuth, TE, PIT: 5 catches for 43 yards, 2 TDs
• Justin Fields, QB, CHI: 17-of-29 passing for 291 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
• Darnell Mooney, WR, CHI: 3 catches for 41 yards, 1 TD; 1 run for 15 yards, 1 TD

---

Steelers Offense Answers Call in Second Half

Monday is the type of game the Steelers could ill-afford to lose if they are going to be a true threat in the AFC.

After all, they still have a combined seven contests against formidable AFC contenders in the Los Angeles Chargers, Cincinnati Bengals, Ravens, Tennessee Titans, Kansas City Chiefs and Cleveland Browns. Stacking wins, especially against a team under .500 in Chicago, before that stretch figures to be key in the playoff race.

Pittsburgh started with the necessary urgency with a touchdown on its opening drive that featured a deep ball to Chase Claypool and Najee Harris scoring. Roethlisberger also mixed in a touchdown pass to Pat Freiermuth in the first half, and it looked as if the home team was going to pull away in a complete blowout.

To Chicago's credit, it remained within striking distance when the game could have gotten out of hand.

That put the pressure on the Steelers offense to deliver, and it answered the call with a 75-yard touchdown drive that ended with a strike to Freiermuth and another drive that featured a 54-yard field goal from Boswell after the Bears had pulled within one score twice.

Never was Pittsburgh under the spotlight more than its final two drives when Chicago returned Ray-Ray McCloud's fumbled punt for a touchdown and Fields directed a go-ahead touchdown drive with less than two minutes remaining.

It responded with two field goal drives of its own with the final one clinching the game. While the Steelers were inconsistent for much of the contest and benefited from some poor officiating, they came through whenever the pressure was applied by the visitors.

---

Monday's Game a Long-Term Positive for Bears

While the Bears had an opportunity to improve their postseason chances Monday, the development of Fields is far more important for the franchise's long-term health than battling for the bottom of the playoff field.

That's what made this game so notable since he was coming off the best performance of his young career when he threw for 175 yards, ran for 101 yards and accounted for two touchdowns in a loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

It didn't look like he would pick up where he left off when he struggled throughout the first half. Penalties nullified any early rhythm, and Cam Heyward notched an interception along the defensive line on Chicago's third possession.

The Bears had just three points at intermission and six points after the third quarter, but they finally built some momentum with a deep ball to Marquise Goodwin and a touchdown pass to Jimmy Graham. In a theme for the day, the score was nullified on a phantom low block call, and they settled for a field goal after the officials ignored a roughing-the-passer play.

It would have been easy for the offense and Fields to grow frustrated with the officiating that was perhaps never worse than a taunting penalty on Cassius Marsh after a sack on Pittsburgh's penultimate possession to set up a key field goal.

Instead, the rookie quarterback threw a dart to Graham to set up a Darnell Mooney touchdown run and remained poised in a two-minute drill while finding Allen Robinson on a deep ball and hitting Mooney for a go-ahead touchdown.

The Ohio State product showed flashes of brilliance for the second consecutive week and even moved his team into borderline field-goal range in 26 seconds without any timeouts at the end. While it was another loss for Chicago, the team has its franchise quarterback.          

---

What's Next?

The Steelers host the Detroit Lions in Week 10, while the Bears head into their bye before hosting the Ravens in Week 11.