2024 REWIND: Week 10 – Steelers get past Commanders in Landover by a score of 28-27

A bad spot on Washington’s 4th down play and a dead ball penalty against the defense lead to a rare late-game failure for the ‘24 Commanders

Heading into this game, the Commanders held a half-game lead on the Eagles in the NFC East division.

The Eagles played the Cowboys, who were without starting quarterback Dak Prescott, later in the day, so getting a win against the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers was vitally important for Washington to hold onto its slender lead in the division.

The Steelers had a 6-2 record and led the AFC North division. While Pittsburgh ranked just 13th in the NFL in points per game on the season, they had recently changed the starting quarterback. With Russell Wilson now playing, the Steelers ranked 4th in points per game (31.7) over the prior three games, while the Commanders ranked 6th at 28.3.

Things went a bit the other way defensively, as Pittsburgh’s defense ranked 2nd in the league for the season. Over the prior three games, however, Washington ranked 3rd in points per game given up (14.7) while the Steelers ranked 4th at 15.3.

This game looked to be a great matchup between two good teams, each of which had worked hard to improve upon early-season weaknesses.

The Washington roster, however, was showing the effects of a long season:

• Starting RB Brian Robinson was out; 2nd year player Chris Rodriguez, who was elevated from the practice squad a week earlier and who had led the Commanders rushing attack against the Giants, had now been signed to the 53-man roster and was expected to play a strong role in this game.
• Kicker Austin Seibert, the NFL’s leading scorer, was also out because of a hip injury. The team had tried out a couple of kickers and signed Zane Gonzalez to the practice squad. Gonzalez was elevated for the game and handled the kicking duties.
• Although GM Adam Peters had traded for four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Marshon Lattimore earlier in the week, the veteran DB will was not active for this game against the Steelers as he was dealing with a lingering hamstring injury and still getting up to speed on the defense. We know now that it would be several more weeks before Lattimore was healthy enough to play, and he never looked completely himself playing with the Commanders at any point in the ‘24 season or playoffs.
• For the second week in a row, LT Cornelius Lucas was out with an ankle injury. Rookie Brandon Coleman, who performed well in his first NFL start a week ago, started again in this game at home against the Steelers. He would continue to start at left tackle for the balance of the season.

The Commanders would play again on Thursday night against the Eagles, and they had games against the Cowboys and Titans before a Week 14 bye. This stretch was the most challenging of the ‘24 season, with Washington losing three straight games, beginning with this 1-point loss to Pittsburgh in a game that they could have — and maybe should have — won.

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First Quarter

Commanders defense opens with a 3 & out
Washington kicked off. After a short run & a short pass completion, the Steelers faced 3rd & 2 at the 33 yard line. A run wide to the right gained just a yard to bring up 4th down. Olamide Zaccheaus muffed the punt, but fell on it to prevent a potentially disastrous turnover.

Washington also runs 3 plays and punts
Two plays into the drive, Washington faced 3rd & 2 at the 22-yard line. Daniels 3rd down pass was incomplete on a target that went wide of Zaccheaus. Tress Way came on to punt the ball back to the Steelers.

Pittsburgh opens the scoring with a 7-play, 70-yard TD drive
The drive started with a defensive pass interference call against Benjamin St-Juste to gift the Steelers 14 yards and a first down at the 44-yard line.

Two runs by Najee Harris earned 13 yards and another first down across midfield and into Washington territory at the 49-yard line.

The Steelers earned another first down to Washington’s 31-yard line; after that, Jeremy Chinn was penalized for roughing the passer, pushing the ball to the 16-yard line and gifting the Steelers yet another first down.

On 2nd & 9 from the 15-yard line, Wilson hit George Pickens in the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown. After the PAT, the Steelers had a 7-0 lead.

Commanders offense can’t get anything going
Following a 9-yard completion to Terry McLaurin and a loss of 2 yard on an Ekeler carry, the Commanders faced 3rd & 3 at the 37-yard line. The Steelers defense came up big, with Cameron Heyward sacking Jayden Daniels with a strong interior rush. It was another 3 & out by the Washington offense, and a very audible chant of “Here we go Steelers, here we go!” could be heard on the broadcast from the rowdy Steelers faithful.

A disastrous fake punt backfires for Pittsburgh
On 4th & 15, the Steelers had to punt again from their own 15-yard line.

Incredibly, the Steelers decided to run a fake punt, which they executed perfectly, except that the receiver, James Pierre dropped the ball.

Commanders tie the game on a 15-yard TD drive
Washington started its 3rd offensive drive in the Pittsburgh red zone. A pass and a run earned 1st & goal inside the 1-yard line where Austin Ekeler was tackled on a 6-yard run.

On the next play, Ekeler took a pitch to the right by Daniels and pushed his way into the end zone for the badly-needed touchdown. Zane Gonzalez made his first point in a Commanders uniform to tie the score 7-7. The scoring drive was 3 plays and 15 yards. With 3:44 remaining in the first quarter, we had a competitive score in a game that had been mostly controlled by Pittsburgh on both sides of the ball because of the failed fake punt.

Three offensive series last 11 plays, ending in 3 punts
Steelers: The burgundy & gold defense forced another 3 & out. This time, Zaccheaus fielded the punt cleanly on a fair catch at the Washington 29-yard line.

It was Jayden Daniels time again with 2:07 remaining in the 1st quarter.

Commanders: On 3rd & 13 at the 26 yard line, Jayden Daniels, despite good pass protection, was unable to complete the pass to McLaurin on 3rd down. Another 3 & out in what is shaping up as a primarily defensive battle.

Steelers: A pass and a run earned 16 yards before the quarter ended with the Steelers 1st & 10 at their own 3-yard line.

At this point, Russell Wilson was 3-7, 29 yards and Jayden Daniels was 3-6, 22 yards. Washington had earned just 5 yards on 5 carries by Ekeler & McNichols. The Steelers had been more successful in the run game, with 42 yards on 10 carries.

The turnover on downs at the PIT 15-yard line on the failed fake punt is the reason that Washington is holding its own on the scoreboard.

Second Quarter

The 2nd quarter opened with just 4 yards gained on two plays, bringing up 3rd & 6 at the 40-yard line. Mike Sainristil stopped George Pickens 1 yard short of the line to gain, and Mike Tomlin sent out his punter on 4th & 1.

Special teams disaster for Washington
This time, Olamide Zaccheaus lost control of the punt again, but this time he wasn’t able to recover. Pittsburgh recovered at Washington’s 14-yard line. It was a disastrous mistake by OZ.

On the sudden change, Pitt got the ball inside the 3-yard line to set up 1st & goal.

Steelers 5-play, 14-yard TD drive to re-take the lead
On the critical 3rd & goal play, Wilson found TE Pat Freiermuth for an easy touchdown to take the lead again. After the PAT, the score was 14-7 with 10:28 left in the half.

With both defenses playing well, special teams mistakes by both teams have been huge inflection points in the game.

Commanders cut into the lead with a Gonzalez field goal
After the kickoff, Washington set up for its 5th offensive drive at the 30-yard line with the Steelers having forced three 3 & outs in the first four possessions.

The Commanders earned their 2nd first down of the game on a completion of 11 yards to Noah Brown on the right sideline. On the next play, Joey Porter was flagged for pass interference against Noah Brown — an increasingly common occurrence — to move the ball 23 yards to the Steelers 36-yard line.

A 10-yard run by Austin Ekeler earned another 1st down at the PIT 26-yard line.

A failed screen pass and a loss on an Ekeler run brought up 3rd & 14 at the 30-yard line. The Commanders were in field goal range, but needed a touchdown. It was not to be. An incomplete pass on 3rd down brought Zane Gonzalez on for a 48-yard FG attempt.

The kick was strong and right down the middle, and the score was 14-10 with 8:11 left in the first half. It was a 5-play, 40-yard scoring drive.

Commanders defense forces another punt
On 3rd & 10, Pittsburgh’s 5th play of the drive, the Commanders forced the incompletion with good pressure and good coverage.

The Steelers punted again. Zaccheaus got out of the way, and the Pittsburgh coverage team downed the ball at the Washington 6-yard line.

Commanders offense drives 94 yards to close out the half with another touchdown to take the lead for the first time
Jayden Daniels and the offense got the ball with 5:39 remaining in the half. They definitely needed to add a points to the scoreboard, but would also get the ball first in the second-half.

On the 3rd play of the drive, the Steelers defense came up with an apparent sack of Jayden Daniels, but two defensive fouls were flagged — including a face mask — negating the sack and giving Washington a 1st down at the 31-yar line

The offense moved the ball effectively up to the 2-minute warning. They had 120 seconds and 2 time outs to move the ball 44 yards, and — again — would be receiving the second-half kickoff. For their part, the Steelers had a full complement of timeouts as play resumed after the two-minute warning.

Ekeler ran the ball twice, earning a total of 6 yards to bring up 3rd & 4 with 1:20 remaining in the half. The Steelers stopped the clock with their first timeout of the game.

On 3rd down, Jayden Daniels launched a deep pass to rookie Luke McCaffrey for a 23-yard gain to the PIT 15-yard line.

On the next 2 plays, Ekeler burst through the Steelers defense for 12 total yards to bring up 1st & goal at the 3-yard line with 00:26 on the clock.

On the next play, Daniels hit a wide open Dyami Brown in the back of the end zone for what should have been a touchdown, but Brown dropped it — no excuse…just a drop.

A defensive pass interference call in the end zone called against Joey Porter Jr. who was defending Terry McLaurin gave Washington another 1st & goal at the 1-yard line with 2 time outs in hand.

Austin Ekeler followed his blocking to the left side and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 00:16 remaining. Another successful PAT by Zane Gonzalez took the score to 17-14. The drive had covered 94 yards in 15 plays.

It feels as if the Steelers should be leading by two scores in this game, but after taking a knee, they went to the locker room trailing by 3 points and having to open the second half playing defense.

Halftime Stats

Statistics via ESPN

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Third Quarter

Commanders open a 10-point lead with a TD drive featuring an explosive play by Terry McLaurin
Washington had outgained the Steelers in the first half, 113 yards to 97 — definitely a defensive struggle, but one with 31 points scored due largely to each team having a short-field touchdown due to a special teams mistake by the opposing team.

Each team had a sack; neither QB had thrown an interception.

Washington needs to score on this drive to take firm control of the game.

On the first play from scrimmage in the second half, Daniels hit McLaurin for a catch & run of 54 yards, and just that fast, Washington had 1st & 10 at the PIT 17-yard line.

Two plays later, it was 3rd & 10, and Daniel hit McLaurin for their second big play of the half — a 16-yard completion that wound up with 1st & goal with the ball at the 1-yard line. After both pass completions, the crowd could be heard on the TV broadcast chanting “Terry, Terry, Terry”.

It was Jeremy McNichols’ turn. He ran the ball into the end zone on 1st & goal and the Commanders had a 24-14 lead with about 13 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter.

Two huge pass completions to Terry McLaurin had been pivotal in the drive. McLaurin now had 4 receptions for 85 yards, and, although the Washington running game had earned only 44 yards on 17 carries, Ekeler and McNichols had scored 3 rushing touchdowns.

Pittsburgh scores an answering touchdown
After 3 running plays and an incomplete pass (earning 1 first-down), Pit faced 3rd & 8 at the 38-yard line. It ended up being a big play for the Steelers with a catch & run for 26 yards to the Washington 36-yard line.

Wilson was sacked for the second time in the game, again by Dante Fowler, for a loss of 10 yards. He followed that up with another big offensive play, completing a catch & run for 34 yards to George Pickens, giving the Steelers 1st & 10 at the WAS 12 yard line.

Two plays later, and following an offsides penalty against Fowler, it was 2nd & 3; the Steelers picked it up easily on a Najee Harris run to earn 1st & goal at the 1 yard line.

On the next play, Najee Harris nearly walked in for a touchdown for the Steelers on a run to the left side. After the PAT, the score was 24-21, with Washington leading by 3 points with about 8 minutes left in the quarter.

The PIT scoring drive covered 75 yards on 9 plays.

Russell Wilson was now 9-18 for 108 yards and 2 TDs, and Najee Harris had 11 carries for 36 yards and a touchdown.

Commanders and Steelers trade punts
Commanders: Washington’s next offensive drive began at the 46-yard line following a beautiful 40-yard return by Austin Ekeler. The Commanders would start this drive with very good field position hoping for a fourth consecutive scoring drive.

Zaccheaus, who is having a tough game, dropped the first down pass when he was wide open on a crosser in the middle of the field. A beautiful catch for 39 yards was negated by penalty flags on both teams leading to a replay of 2nd down. An incomplete pass brought up 3rd & 10 at Washington’s 46-yard line. Calls of “Defense” were audible from Steelers fans on the broadcast. They got the defense they were looking for when TJ Watt batted down a Daniels pass to end the drive, which, in effect was a 3 & out.

Percy Butler buried the Steelers’ punt returner at the Pittsburgh 7-yard line, giving the black & gold possession deep in their own territory and needing 3 points to tie or a touchdown to take the lead; 07:18 remained in the 3rd quarter.

Steelers: The Steelers were pushed back by a holding penalty on 1st down that moved them back to the 5 yard line. An deep shot to Jefferson was broken up by Sainristil, and then Najee Harris was held to a short gain to bring up 3rd & 9 at the 8 yard line. Russell Wilson’s 3rd down pass was incomplete, about 5-7 yards overthrown, and the Commanders had forced another 3 & out.

Following a poor 34-yard punt out of the end zone, the Commanders took over at Pittsburgh’s 42-yard line with a great chance to add to their lead.

Washington adds a field goal to take a 6-point lead
On the 5th play of the drive, it was 3rd & 11 at the PIT 30-yard line after Ertz dropped a pass that would have been good for a first-down.. Washington was again in field goal position, but looking for a touchdown. On third down, Ekeler earned 7 yards.

On 4th & 4, Gonzalez came on the field and drilled a 41-yard kick to expand the Washington lead to 27-21 with 02:51 remaining in the 3rd quarter. Washington’s scoring drive had covered just 19 yards in 7 plays.

Commanders defense comes up with a huge turnover
With the third quarter winding down, Pittsburgh started on its own 24-yard line following a 19-yard return due to good Commanders special teams coverage.

The defense started strong, stopping the first-down run for a yard, and then sacking Wilson again on 2nd down to bring up 3rd & 14 at the 20-yard line.

On 3rd down, Wilson scrambled and then threw a rainbow downfield that was intercepted by safety Jeremy Chinn at the 26-yard line. He ran the ball back, but was determined to be down by contact at the point of the interception.

It was 1st down at the Washington 26 yard line.

Washington’s offense struggles and bungles a trick play
The Commanders took advantage of the sudden change with a fantastic pass that hit Terry McLaurin in-stride 28 yards downfield on the left sideline, re-starting the “Terry, Terry, Terry” chant.

Two plays later, on 2nd & 5, Cameron Heyward broke through the Washington pass protection to sack Jayden Daniels for an 11-yard loss as time expired on the 3rd quarter.

At this point, Daniels had passed for 191 yards with no TDs and no INTs, while Wilson had 108 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT. Washington had made 18 first downs; Pitt had made 14.

Fourth Quarter

The final quarter began with Washington running a play on 3rd & 15 at their own 49 yard line. It was a busted play — a strange trick play that was blown up for another 11 yard loss. Washington had squandered the good field position that followed the Chinn interception.

The Steelers took over at their own 13-yard line following Tress Way’s 5th punt of the day.

Commanders defense comes up with another turnover
The Steelers moved the ball well, with a key play being an incredible pass completion for 24 yards to Pickens down the left sideline, giving the Steelers a fresh set of downs at the 29-yard line.

With Pitt running a quick-paced offense, after two running plays, it was 3rd & 2 at the 21. Washington couldn’t make the stop; Jaylen Warren ripped off a 10-yard run for the first down.

Two more carries by Warren got the ball to the 1-yard line, but the officials ruled a fumble on the field, with Jeremy Chinn getting his 2nd turnover of the day with recovery of a fumble forced by Quan Martin!

Nursing a 6-point lead, and with 7:05 remaining in the game, the Commanders took the field for its 11th offensive drive of the game, but working from their own 1-yard line.

Steelers force another 3 & out
After a holding call, the Commanders faced 2nd & 8 from their own 3-yard line. Jayden Daniels launched a ball down the middle of the field to Luke McCaffrey, but missed him by about a yard. On third down, under heavy pressure in the end zone, Daniels barely got rid of the ball to avoid a sack/safety.

Tress Way’s punt went 58 yards, but the Pitt return man brought it back 15 yards, across midfield to the Washington 46 yard line with 05:46 remaining in the game.

Steelers re-take a 1-point lead with 6-play TD drive
Following a pre-snap penalty and a 1-yad loss, it was 2nd & 16 on the Steelers’ side of midfield. Wilson was under pressure but scrambled on 2nd down and completed a pass for 13 yards to bring up 3rd & 3 at the Washington 39-yard line. Now, you could hear the Washington fans screaming “Defense” on the broadcast.

Instead, Wilson hit TE Freiermuth for 6 yards and a 1st down at the 33-yard line. The Steelers were in field goal range, but trailing by 6 points with less than 3 minutes remaining in the game. They were thinking touchdown, and would be ready to use all 4 downs.

An incomplete pass brought up 3rd & 9 at the 32-yard line, but Pittsburgh had two chances to convert. On the 3rd down play, Wilson threw to the end zone, hitting the newest Steeler, WR Mike Williams for a 32-yard touchdown. The PAT gave Pittsburgh a 1-point lead at 28-27.

With 02:22 on the clock and three timeouts in hand, Washington would need only a field goal to take the lead and potentially win the game.

I’ll go to my grave convinced that Zach Ertz made the line to gain on this 4th down play
After the Boswell kickoff and return by Ekeler, the Commanders started their final offensive drive of the game at the 35-yard line. The crowd was roaring.

1st down – Daniels, under heavy pressure from Alex Highsmith, dirted the ball to prevent the sack. Highsmith turned his ankle and had to be helped off the field.

2nd down – Completion to Noah Brown on the right sideline; Brown turned inside and ran the ball for a 14-yard gain as the two-minute warning arrived.

Following the timeout, Washington had 1st & 10 at their own 49-yard line, needing no more than 20 yards to get into field goal range. Jayden Daniels would need to move the team downfield while managing the clock, aiming to add the game-winning score as the clock approached 00:00.

1st down – Daniels scrambled up the middle for 1 yard.

2nd down – Daniels pass incomplete when his arm was hit in its throwing motion.

3rd down – With Steelers fans waving towels and chanting “Defense”, Daniels hit Noah Brown in the hands at the 27-yard line, but the pass was broken up to force 4th down. The ball was underthrown by Daniels as Brown was wide open.

4th down – Pass completed to Zach Ertz right at the line-to-gain. Officials spot the ball short. Under 2 minutes, the play was reviewed.

After review, the call on the field was upheld. The Commanders had failed to convert, and the Steelers took over with 01:18 on the clock, though Washington had all three timeouts.

Steelers run out the clock with a key penalty on rookie DT Johnny Newton
After the Steelers had run 3 plays, it was 4th & 1 at the Washington 49 with the clock stopped and 62 seconds remaining in the game. Mike Tomlin sent his offense back out on the field. If the Commanders get the stop, Washington will have about a minute to go 15-20 yards and kick a game-winning field goal.

Incredibly, on the hard count, Johnny Newton jumped, giving the Steelers 5 yards, a first-down, and the win in a deflating and somewhat anti-climactic final ending.

The Standard (S5, E7): Play Like a Steeler | Pittsburgh Steelers – Unique NFL Films-style highlights of the Pittsburgh-Washington game

Full Game Stats

Statistics via ESPN