Chiefs vs. Steelers: Full Report Card Grades for Pittsburgh
The Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the playoffs largely because of their explosive offense, but they went old school in clinching a postseason spot Sunday.
The defense answered the call, and the Steelers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs by a smash-mouthy score of 20-12 at Heinz Field.
With their third straight victory, the Steelers (10-5) have set the stage for next week's showdown to decide the AFC North title. Regardless of what the Cincinnati Bengals (9-4-1) do Monday night at home against the Denver Broncos, the winner of next week's game between the Bengals and Steelers at Heinz Field will win the AFC North. That game has been flexed to 8:30 p.m. Sunday night on NBC, according to NFL.com.
The Bengals-Steelers winner will earn a home playoff game.
The Chiefs (8-7) could have earned the playoff tiebreaker against the Steelers, but their playoff chances took a big hit with the loss.
Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown scored the Steelers' touchdowns Sunday: Bell on a one-yard run and Brown on a three-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
Touchdowns from Bell and Brown are pretty standard stuff. What hasn't been standard this season is the kind of performance the defense put forth.
The Steelers didn't allow a touchdown and sacked Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith six times. The last time they sacked a quarterback six times was Week 16 of the 2012 season, when the Bengals eliminated them from playoff contention with a 13-10 win at Heinz Field.
Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles was held to 29 rushing yards. He still needs 21 to reach 1,000 for the third straight season. He also lost a fumble with the Chiefs in field-goal range late in the third quarter. Rookie defensive end Stephon Tuitt knocked the ball loose and second-year linebacker Vince Williams recovered it. That led to Roethlisberger's touchdown pass to Brown and a 17-6 Steelers lead.
Charles' fumble was the only turnover the Steelers forced Sunday. They've forced 18 this season. They need two next week just to match the 20 they forced in both 2012 and 2013.
However, they played their third straight turnover-free game Sunday and are even in giveaway-takeaway ratio for the season. They have a chance to finish on the plus side for the first time since 2010.
More importantly, the Steelers have a chance to host a playoff game for the first time since 2010. If they beat the Bengals next Sunday, they don't have to pack their bags for at least another week.
Here's how each position group graded out Sunday.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Just as the defense took a page from the good ol' days of Steelers football, Roethlisberger put together a stat line reminiscent of a time when the Steelers only needed him to be efficient.
Roethlisberger completed 18 of 25 passes, his fewest attempts since Week 15 of last season, for 220 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.
Roethlisberger threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Brown to increase the Steelers' lead to 17-6 late in the third quarter, but on the play, he knocked knees with Chiefs defensive tackle Vance Walker. He went to the locker room to have it checked out but didn't miss a play.
Ken Laird of TribLive Radio talked to Roethlisberger about his knee:
"Roethlisberger on his right knee: "It's fine. The doctors just wanted to check it out" Leg whipped? "I haven't seen it. I knew it just hurt"
— Ken Laird (@Ken_Laird) December 21, 2014"
Roethlisberger has been banged up in his career, but considering all of the quarterback injuries teams like the Rams, the Titans and the Texans have suffered this season, Roethlisberger has proven pretty durable.
The Chiefs entered the game leading the NFL in red-zone defense, but Roethlisberger navigated the Steelers to two touchdowns in their four red-zone trips.
Grade: B+
Running Back
2 of 10
Bell was held to 63 yards on 20 carries and has run for 110 yards over the past two games, but he scored a touchdown on a one-yard run that gave the Steelers a 10-6 lead with 4:18 left in the second quarter. The Steelers led the rest of the way.
Bell caught just one pass for nine yards, the first time this season he hasn't caught at least two passes. But he was productive enough to outshine the Chiefs' Charles, who ran for just 29 yards. Bell remains second in the NFL with 1,341 rushing yards.
Grade: B
Wide Receivers and Tight Ends
3 of 10
Brown and tight end Heath Miller led the way, both catching seven passes.
Brown's receptions totaled 72 yards. He barely kept alive his NFL-record streak of games with at least seven catches for 70 yards. Sunday was his 10th straight. Brown leads the league with 122 receptions this season, which is tied for the fourth most in NFL history. He has broken his own single-season franchise record with 1,570 receiving yards.
With less than a minute to go in the third quarter, Brown caught a three-yard touchdown pass from Roethlisberger. The Steelers essentially controlled the game from that point. Brown caught a 19-yard pass earlier in the drive.
In the fourth quarter, Brown caught a 14-yard pass on 3rd-and-4 to keep alive a drive that culminated in a field goal that made it a two-possession game.
Miller's seven receptions went for 68 yards. He hauled in three for 34 yards on the second-quarter drive that ended with Bell's one-yard touchdown run. Miller dropped a TD pass in the end zone, but he made up for it by throwing a key block on Bell's TD run.
Martavis Bryant caught a 44-yard pass on the game's opening drive for his only reception. It led to a field goal and a 3-0 lead. Markus Wheaton caught two passes and has 48 receptions this season, which is fourth on the team but second among wide receivers.
Grade: A-
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Offensive Line
4 of 10
Left tackle Kelvin Beachum yielded the only sack on Roethlisberger. It was just the third time in the past four games Roethlisberger has been sacked. He's absorbed 33 sacks this season. If he's sacked less than seven times next week, it will be the fewest sacks he's taken in any of the seven seasons in which he's played at least 15 games.
Marcus Gilbert returned at right tackle after missing three games with an ankle injury. Mike Adams, who played in place of Gilbert, frequently came into the game to fill the void left by blocking tight end Matt Spaeth, who was out with an elbow injury.
The Steelers averaged less than three yards a carry for the second straight week. After gaining two yards per attempt last week at Atlanta, they averaged 2.6 per carry Sunday.
Grade: B+
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Cameron Heyward led the unit with four tackles, 1.5 sacks and three quarterback hits. He also threw in a tackle for loss. Heyward's solo sack on third down forced the Chiefs to settle for a field goal in the first quarter.
Tuitt had three tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss. He also jarred the ball loose from Charles with the Chiefs inside the Steelers' 30-yard line in the third quarter. The Steelers converted the game's only turnover into a touchdown and a 17-6 lead that the Chiefs couldn't overcome.
The defensive line fronted an effort that held Charles to 29 yards on nine carries. Charles was third in the league last season with 1,287 rushing yards. He came into Sunday's game with 950 yards, and the Steelers didn't let him reach 1,000 on their watch. They held him to his lowest total since the Broncos held him to four yards in Week 2. Charles' longest run of the game was his first, a 10-yard gain. In the game's final 54 minutes, he was held to 19 yards on eight carries.
Grade: A
Linebackers
6 of 10
The linebackers deserve credit for stopping Charles, too.
Lawrence Timmons tied his season high with 13 tackles. He and James Harrison combined to tackle Charles on 4th-and-1 from the Steelers' 12-yard line in the final seconds of the first half to prevent the Chiefs from getting any points before halftime. The Steelers went into the locker room up 10-6.
Timmons also did a solid job holding Kelce, the team's top pass-catcher, to four receptions for 31 yards.
Harrison returned after missing two games with a knee injury and registered 1.5 sacks and two tackles for loss. He dropped De'Anthony Thomas for a six-yard loss right after the two-minute warning to help stifle the Chiefs' final drive of the first half.
Jason Worilds led the team with two sacks. It was his first two-sack game of the year, and he shares the team lead with Heyward. Both have 6.5 sacks.
Sean Spence made a couple of noticeable tackles against the run in the first half, and Williams recovered the Charles fumble. Williams and Harrison both made seven total tackles.
Grade: A
Defensive Backs
7 of 10
Antwon Blake was the only Steeler credited with a pass breakup, but it was a big one.
In the second quarter, Blake foiled a touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe in the end zone. The Chiefs had to settle for a field goal and a 6-3 lead instead of a 10-3 lead.
Safety Mike Mitchell continues to make himself visible for reasons other than dumb penalties. On 3rd-and-4 from the Steelers' 15 with 33 seconds left in the first half, Mitchell stopped Thomas short of the first down after he caught a pass from Smith. The play was originally ruled a first down but was overturned on replay.
So as it turned out, Mitchell forced the 4th-and-1 play in which Timmons and Harrison stuffed Charles.
William Gay missed a tackle that turned into a 33-yard gain, and Smith threw for 300 yards for the first time this season. But overall, the defensive backs covered Chiefs receivers well enough for the Steelers pass rush to develop. It wasn't exactly their toughest assignment. Bowe leads the Chiefs with a pedestrian 57 receptions this season.
It was an admirable showing for the secondary without Troy Polamalu and Ike Taylor, even if those two veterans don't contribute as much in this late stage of their careers.
Grade: B-
Special Teams
8 of 10
The Chiefs executed a fake field goal for a first down when holder Dustin Colquitt flipped the ball to Kelce. The Chiefs had 1st-and-goal from the 6-yard line, but they had to settle for a field goal anyway and took a 6-3 lead in the second quarter.
The Steelers made up for that special teams flub at the end when Will Johnson easily fielded Cairo Santos' onside kick after the Chiefs pulled to within 20-12 on a field goal.
In between, Shaun Suisham made both of his 23-yard field-goal attempts. It was the second straight week that Suisham made two field goals of the same distance; both of his field goals in Atlanta were 38 yards. Suisham has made 90 percent of his field-goal attempts this season.
Brad Wing punted twice, once in each half. The first one was just 34 yards, but the second was 56 yards.
Wheaton advanced past the 20-yard line on two of his three kickoff returns.
Grade: B-
Coaching
9 of 10
Head coach Mike Tomlin unsuccessfully challenged a Kelce catch that gave the Chiefs a first down at the Steelers' 31 in the third quarter, but there was enough doubt to warrant the challenge. The Steelers got the ball two plays later anyway when Charles fumbled.
The Steelers got away with some questionable play-calling in the second quarter. They had 2nd-and-goal at the 1-yard line and threw the ball twice rather than giving it to Bell. Roethlisberger threw an incomplete pass to Bryant on third down, but Chiefs defensive back Ron Parker was called for defensive holding. Subsequently, the Steelers had 1st-and-goal at the 1-yard line. They finally gave it to Bell, who gave them a 10-6 lead.
The coaching staff didn't let the Steelers soften up at home like they did the last time they played at Heinz Field. The Steelers played like they knew what was at stake, and they earned a playoff spot.
Grade: B+
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| QB | B+ |
| RB | B |
| WR/TE | A- |
| OT | B+ |
| DT | A |
| LB | A |
| DB | B- |
| Special Teams | B- |
| Coaching | B+ |
| Cumulative Grade | A- |
The defense vaults the Steelers' cumulative grade into the "A" range. It wasn't the most dynamic offense that the Steelers had to stop, but it was a big step forward. Now, the defense has to find a way to get the same result against the type of offense it will see in the playoffs.
The Steelers needed the Chiefs' help last year to get into the playoffs. Despite resting their starters, the Chiefs had a chance to beat the Chargers at San Diego in Week 17, but Ryan Succop missed a 41-yard field goal at the end of regulation, and the Chargers won in overtime.
This year, the Steelers had to beat the Chiefs themselves to avoid putting their fate in the hands of other teams in Week 17. They showed they learned their lesson by winning Sunday, and now, they're one win away from winning their last four games of the regular season. They haven't done that since 2005.
ESPN.com was used for game statistics.
Follow @Steel_Tweets
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
