The Pittsburgh Steelers opened their preseason slate on Friday Night at Raymond James Stadium against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a 27-17 win that featured some fireworks.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the toss and chose to receive. Rookie UDFA K B.T. Potter booted the opening kickoff for the Steelers, and they quickly forced a three-and-out. Three straight carries for RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn set up a 4th and 1, and then Tampa rookie OL Cody Mauch committed a false start and Tampa Bay punted away. The punt by Jake Camarda was downed at Pittsburgh’s 17.
Pittsburgh’s first play was an eight-yard completion to WR Diontae Johnson on a curl route, and on 2nd and 2, Pickett went to TE Pat Freiermuth for a six-yard completion and a first down. On the ensuing play, RB Najee Harris got his first touch of the game, losing one yard. Then, RB Jaylen Warren got a touch, gaining one yard to make things 3rd and 10. Pickett went back to Johnson for an 11-yard gain and a first down to the Pittsburgh 42.
Warren then showed off some burst, picking up 10 yards for another first down and the Steelers then picked up their third-straight first down on a 13-yard completion from Pickett to Johnson. After a two-yard run by Warren, Pickett then avoided a sack and threw his first incompletion, intended to Warren, and on 3rd and 8, Pickett took a shot downfield and found second-year WR George Pickens on a slant, and Pickens did the rest, taking it into the end zone for a 33-yard touchdown.
Following Potter’s extra point, which doinked off the upright before going in, the Steelers took a 7-0 lead with 7:39 left to go in the first quarter. Pickett was 6-7 for 70 yards on the opening drive.
Following a kick return by Devin Thompkins, Tampa Bay took over on their own 33. He then caught a three-yard pass, and rookie WR Trey Palmer picked up seven for a first down. Tampa faced a 1st and 15 after an illegal formation penalty, and then Vaughn lost a yard before Thompkins picked up eight to make it 3rd and 8. Baker Mayfield’s scramble looked to be short of the sticks, but the Bucs were penalized again for holding, and they couldn’t convert on 3rd and 18.
Following Tampa’s punt to rookie WR Jordan Byrd, where Pittsburgh was penalized for holding, QB Mitch Trubisky and Pittsburgh’s second-team offensive line entered the game with the ball on their own four-yard line. Two runs by RB Anthony McFarland Jr. went nowhere, and Trubisky’s pass to WR Gunner Olszewski was incomplete on third down. Braden Mann’s punt went 51 yards to the Tampa Bay 41, where it was downed by CB Luq Barcoo.
On 2nd and 2, LB Kwon Alexander was called for a questionable unnecessary roughness penalty, and after an illegal motion penalty on Tampa was declined on 2nd and 4, QB Baker Mayfield found WR David Moore for a five-yard completion on the final play of the first quarter.
Tampa picked up another first down two plays later on a completion to WR Kaylon Geiger down to the Pittsburgh 12, and on 3rd and 6 from the Pittsburgh 8, Mayfield hit Palmer for a touchdown. Chase McLaughlin’s extra point tied the game up at 7 with 12:20 left in the first half.
After a touchback on the kickoff, Tampa Bay immediately got the ball back with Trubisky throwing an interception to CB Zyon McCollum on a pass intended for WR Cody White on a ball White bobbled, and the Bucs took over at their own 41.
On the first play of Tampa’s drive, Palmer was flagged for offensive pass interference. After a one-yard loss, Mayfield went to Geiger for 20 yards, but on 3rd and Vaughn was stopped by DeMarvin Leal for no gain. Tampa went for it on 4th and 1, and Isaiahh Loudermilk made a play in the backfield to stop him for a loss of three. Pittsburgh took over at the Tampa Bay 47.
Calvin Austin III got his first NFL touch on the first play of Pittsburgh’s drive, taking a jet sweep 17 yards for a first down. After an incomplete pass to TE Zach Gentry, Austin got the ball again, running for a gain of six. On 3rd and 4, Trubisky went to TE Connor Heyward for a 10-yard gain and a first down to the Tampa Bay 14.
McFarland Jr. then took advantage of his opportunity, taking his handoff 14 yards for a touchdown. After Potter’s extra point, the Steelers took a 14-7 lead with 8:18 left in the first half.
Mayfield, who was 8-9 for 63 yards and a touchdown, was replaced on Tampa’s next drive by QB Kyle Trask. Following a TFL by CB/S Elijah Riley, Trask went to Moore downfield for a 23-yard gain. But a holding penalty against OL Luke Goedeke and a nice stop by LB Toby Ndukwe for a loss of three forced the Bucs into a 3rd and 19, and Trask went deep for more but was intercepted by S Trenton Thompson. Thompson returned it nine yards to the Tampa Bay 48, which is where the Steelers took over with 5:12 left in the first half.
Trubisky’s day was done, and the Steelers turned to third-string QB Mason Rudolph. After a penalty by McCollum gave Pittsburgh a first down, McFarland’s 16-yard gain was wiped out by a holding penalty by C Kendrick Green. After the penalty, he had a bad snap that pushed Pittsburgh to a 2nd and 36. On 3rd and 31, Rudolph was sacked by OLB Cam Gill, putting the Steelers in a ridiculous 4th and 42 situation.
Following a 44-yard punt by Mann, the Bucs took over at their own 24. Trask was sacked by LB Nick Kwiatkoski for a loss of five, and Tampa ended up going three-and-out.
The Steelers took over at their own 32 following Camarda’s punt. On first down, Rudolph went to Olszewski for a gain of 14, and then deep to Connor Heyward for a gain of 24 down to the Tampa Bay 30-yard line. But then Rudolph’s pass was incomplete, and he was sacked for a loss of four and Pittsburgh burned a timeout.
On 3rd and 14 from the Tampa 34, Rudolph scrambled for a gain of 15 and a first down, and then hit Cody White for a seven-yard gain. Rudolph then spiked the ball, and Potter hit a 30-yard field goal to end the first half and put the Steelers up 17-7.
The Steelers opened the second half with possession, and after a 14-yard return by Jordan Byrd put the Steelers on their own 24, Rudolph went deep to Austin, and the Bucs got flagged for defensive pass interference and the Steelers were immediately in Tampa territory at the 38.
RB Greg Bell got his first action on the next play and gained two yards, and then rookie TE Darnell Washington had his first reception for nine yards and a first down. A drop by White and another incompletion by Rudolph led to a field goal try, and Potter was good from 43 yards to put Pittsburgh up 20-7 with 12:37 left in the third quarter.
The Buccaneers started their next drive at their own 32-yard line, and while Tampa got a first down thanks to a defensive holding penalty by CB Chandon Sullivan, it was all they would go. Rookie OLB Nick Herbig and DeMarvin Leal combined for a second-down sack, and Tampa couldn’t pick up the first on 3rd and 14. Pittsburgh took over on their own 21 after a fair catch by Byrd.
After a six-yard run by Austin, Greg Bell ran for six yards and then Rudolph threw a bomb to Austin for a 67-yard touchdown. Potter’s extra point put the Steelers up 27-7 with 8:28 left in the third quarter.
Tampa took over at their own 25 following a touchback, and a 38-yard reception to David Moore on 2nd and 20 following a Tampa Bay penalty lost 15 yards due to a face mask on Moore, but two plays later Trask hit Geiger for a gain of 23 to the Pittsburgh 42. But the Bucs failed to do anything else, punting after a 3rd and 6 sack by Nick Herbig. Camarda’s punt went into the end zone for a touchback.
After the TD pass to Austin, Rudolph’s day was done and undrafted free agent Tanner Morgan came in for the Steelers. Morgan’s first pass went to TE Rodney Williams for a gain of 11 and a first down, but that was all they would get as Mann came onto punt three days later. His punt traveled 44 yards and was fair caught at the Tampa Bay 18.
Tampa Bay got one first down but that was it, before Camarda punted away to Pittsburgh. On 2nd and 11, Morgan fumbled and it was initially ruled Tampa Bay ball, but the call got reversed. But on the very next play, Morgan was picked off by LB J.J. Russell, and Tampa Bay took over at the Pittsburgh 20.
A 3rd and 2 touchdown run by RB Sean Tucker was taken off the board due to a holding call, and the Buccaneers’ pass was incomplete on 3rd and 7. They settled for a 35-yard FG by K Rodrigo Blankenship, which cut Pittsburgh’s lead to 27-10 with 13:35 left in the game.
Jordan Byrd returned the ensuing kickoff 22 yards to the Pittsburgh 18-yard line, and the Steelers proceeded to go three-and-out. Mann’s punt traveled 44 yards and went out of bounds at the Tampa Bay 38.
The Bucs drive started with a 13-yard run by WR Taye Barber on a reverse, but it was Tampa’s only first down of the drive. They went for it on 4th and 4, but QB John Wolford’s pass to Barber was incomplete.
The Steelers got the ball on the Tampa 43 following a turnover, and RB Darius Hagans opened the drive with a five-yard gain. Morgan then went to Byrd on a short pass for six yards and a first down. Two plays later, Morgan went over the middle to WR Hakeem Butler for a 28-yard gain. Byrd got a handoff on a jet right after but lost four yards after a stop by former Steelers LB Ulysses Gilbert III.
On 3rd and 12, LT Broderick Jones was beaten by undrafted free agent Markees Watts, who strip-sacked Morgan. Jones recovered the fumble but was flagged for holding, which was declined, and the Steelers punted. A holding penalty on Tampa during the return meant they started their next drive at their own 5.
WR Kade Warner opened the drive up with a first down reception, but a false start two plays later put Tampa in a 2nd and 15 situation. After an eight-yard gain, Wolford connected with TE Tanner Taula for a 20-yard gain and a first down. On 3rd and 7 a few plays later, Wolford went to TE David Wells who made the catch for a 22-yard gain, and then WR Ryan Miller picked up a first down on a 12-yard reception to the Pittsburgh 25.
Two plays later, a roughing the passer penalty against LB Tanner Muse on top of a 10-yard completion to RB Ronnie Brown set the Bucs up with 1st and Goal at the Pittsburgh 7. An offsides penalty against DL James Nyamwaya moved Tampa up to the Pittsburgh 4, and shortly after punched it in on a touchdown pass to rookie TE Payne Durham. After McLaughlin’s extra point, the Steelers still led 27-17 with 1:58 left to go in the game.
Back-to-back runs by the Steelers to open what should have been their final drive of the game netted -1 yards, and on 3rd and 11 Morgan dumped it off to RB Darius Hagans for a one-yard game. The Bucs inexplicably used their timeouts, so Pittsburgh punted away to Tampa Bay up 10 with 52 seconds left.
The Buccaneers fumbled the ensuing punt, and Pittsburgh recovered. Tanner Morgan kneeled, and Pittsburgh walked out of Raymond James Stadium with a 27-17 win.
The Steelers are now 1-0 in the preseason. They will take on the Buffalo Bills at Acrisure Stadium on August 19 in their second preseason contest.
