Roethlisberger, Steelers Defence cost Pittsburgh Playoff Game Against Raiders
Oakland (10-7) 27 – Pittsburgh (10-7) 20
Pittsburgh, PA (Wild Card Week) – All season long, the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to win games thanks to their defence and their running game. Against the Oakland Raiders in the opening round of the playoffs, it was their defence, and QB Ben Roethlisberger, that cost them the game and ended their season.
The game was largely a see-saw battle, as both teams took turns trading scores. Pittsburgh was able to establish the run game that was so effective for them during the regular season, as they were led by RB Duce Staley, who finished the game with 154 yards on only 23 carries. He also contributed a touchdown. The Raiders also were able to establish their running game, as RB Lamont Jordan collected 111 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries.
“It was a grinding game, for sure,” said Jordan. “Typically, I don’t mind that kind of game, keeps me involved. But we were worried about it today, because that is exactly the type of game Pittsburgh likes to play. But we showed that we can play the same way and not back down.”
Both teams kept things close, as the game was tied at 20 with 4:34 left in the game. The Pittsburgh defence was able to hold off the Raiders from getting any points on their next possession, forcing a punt. Roethlisberger stepped out onto the field, hoping to get the Steelers into field goal range, and instead threw an interception to LB Sam Williams, who took the ball down to the Steelers 10-yard line. Three plays later, QB Kerry Collins found WR Jerry Porter in the end-zone for a 3 yard TD pass, and the Raiders were up by seven with 1:29 left to play. Roethlisberger tried to lead his team back, but they were unable to get a first down, turning the ball over on fourth down, giving the Raiders the win and putting the Steelers out of the playoffs.
“It is heartbreaking,” said Roethlisberger. “To have a real shot at the end to kill off enough clock and get into position to win the game, but to instead turn the ball over and give the other team the win, it is just heartbreaking. It is going to be a long off-season, knowing that my mistake cost us the chance to move on.”
Throughout the game, the Steelers defence was not as strong as it had been all season, as they surrendered 132 yards rushing, allowing Oakland to string together a number of key drives, keeping the game close. The Raiders defence was not much better, as they allowed Pittsburgh to gain 400 total yards. The Raiders defence has been a concern all season, and they are looking to have even more difficulty, as cornerbacks Fabian Washington and Denard Walker both went down during the game. Walker will miss next week’s game, and Washington is lost for the rest of the playoffs with a torn quadriceps muscle. After the game, Oakland GM Barrett Blade signed CB Eric Warfield to a one year contract worth $700,000 to try and fill the hole left in the secondary.
The Raiders offence looked good, though, as they were led by another efficient outing by Kerry Collins, who went 20 for 32, with 237 yards and two touchdowns. Receivers Randy Moss and Jerry Porter had good games, collecting five catches each, with Moss gathering 73 yards and Porter gathering 88 yards. Both had a touchdown. Oakland’s offensive line had a great game, allowing only one sack.
“There are a lot of great things to build on for next week,” said Raiders coach Jorge Shank. “The offence looked very good, which they have been all season long, but the offensive line is gelling awesomely right now. That is going to be huge for us. We need to work on our defence, but I am not overly worried about the yards we are giving up. So long as we can keep the other team off the scoreboard, or at least limit the damage to field goals, we should be alright.”
The Raiders advance now to the AFC semi-finals, where they will travel to Indianapolis, a team favored to win the Super Bowl. They did face each other earlier in the season, during Week 5, where the Raiders beat the Colts 30-24.
Box Score
Attendance: 64,200 (64,500).
Weather: 45 degrees, fair.
1Q: 09:34 OAK - Steve Christie 45 field goal.
1Q: 00:14 PIT - Jeff Reed 19 field goal.
2Q: 09:44 OAK - LaMont Jordan 1 run.
2Q: 09:44 OAK - Steve Christie extra point.
2Q: 03:51 PIT - Hines Ward 4 pass from Ben Roethlisberger.
2Q: 03:51 PIT - Jeff Reed extra point.
2Q: 00:19 OAK - Steve Christie 28 field goal.
4Q: 14:13 PIT - Duce Staley 2 run.
4Q: 14:13 PIT - Jeff Reed extra point.
4Q: 10:05 OAK - Randy Moss 14 pass from Kerry Collins.
4Q: 10:05 OAK - Steve Christie extra point.
4Q: 04:27 PIT - Jeff Reed 47 field goal.
4Q: 01:21 OAK - Jerry Porter 3 pass from Kerry Collins.
4Q: 01:21 OAK - Steve Christie extra point.
Game MVP: OAK 5 Kerry Collins
Oakland 3 10 0 14 - 27
Pittsburgh 3 7 0 10 - 20
Team Statistics OAK PIT
First Downs 22 24
Total Rushes 25 36
Rushing Yards 132 222
Yards Per Carry 5.2 6.1
Pass Attempts 32 25
Completions 20 18
Passing Yards 237 184
Yards Per Attempt 7.4 7.3
Sacked 1 1
Yards Lost 6 6
Interceptions 0 2
Fumbles/Lost 0/0 2/1
Total Plays 58 62
Total Yards 363 400
Yards Per Play 6.2 6.4
3rd Down Plays 4/9 4/10
Avg. YTG on 3rd 7.0 4.4
4th Down Plays 0/0 0/1
Penalties 5 7
Penalty Yards 31 50
Avg. Drive Start OWN 31 OWN 30
Time Of Possession 27:19 32:41
Oakland Individual Statistics
Rushing Att Yards Avg Long TD
34 Jordan 23 111 4.8 19 1
5 Collins 2 21 10.5 22 0
Passing Att Comp Yards Yd/Att Long TD Int Sckd
5 Collins 32 20 237 7.4 26 2 0 1
Receiving Catch Yards Avg YAC Long TD
34 Jordan 6 55 9.1 19 18 0
18 Moss 5 73 14.6 12 23 1
84 Porter 5 88 17.6 12 26 1
43 Easy 3 7 2.3 5 3 0
83 Anderson 1 14 14.0 5 14 0
Punt Returns Att Yards Avg TD
Kick Returns Att Yards Avg TD
18 Moss 2 52 26.0 0
25 Walker 1 14 14.0 0
Punting Punts Yards Avg Long In20
9 Lechler 3 120 40.0 43 1
Kicking FG FGA Long PAT Att
6 Christie 2 3 45 3 3
Defense Tackle Assist Sack Int IntYds IntTD
36 Gibson 8 3 0.0 0 0 0
55 Clark 7 1 0.0 0 0 0
53 Foreman 7 0 0.0 0 0 0
30 Schweigert 3 5 0.0 1 0 0
59 Grant 3 3 0.0 0 0 0
99 Sapp 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
54 Williams 3 0 0.0 1 31 0
93 Kelly 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
27 Washington 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
98 Hamilton 3 0 0.0 0 0 0
87 Whitted 3 0 0.0 0 0 0
22 Hill 2 3 0.0 0 0 0
25 Walker 2 1 0.0 0 0 0
94 Gbaja-Biamila 2 1 0.0 0 0 0
26 Routt 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
95 Jasper 1 0 1.0 0 0 0
85 Gabriel 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
96 Irons 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
52 Morrison 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous Fumb FForc Recov MiscTD KeyRBlk SckAlwd
70 Badger 0 0 0 0 4 1
62 Treu 0 0 0 0 4 0
76 Gallery 0 0 0 0 4 0
55 Clark 0 1 1 0 0 0
61 Seubert 0 0 0 0 2 0
43 Easy 0 0 0 0 1 0
30 Schweigert 0 1 0 0 0 0
Pittsburgh Individual Statistics
Rushing Att Yards Avg Long TD
22 Staley 23 154 6.6 19 1
36 Bettis 9 45 5.0 11 0
39 Parker 3 8 2.6 3 0
7 Roethlisberger 1 15 15.0 15 0
Passing Att Comp Yards Yd/Att Long TD Int Sckd
7 Roethlisberger 25 18 184 7.3 33 1 2 1
Receiving Catch Yards Avg YAC Long TD
89 Bradford 6 89 14.8 9 33 0
83 Miller 4 42 10.5 23 18 0
22 Staley 3 21 7.0 5 12 0
36 Bettis 2 11 5.5 8 8 0
86 Ward 2 17 8.5 4 13 1
35 Kreider 1 4 4.0 4 4 0
Punt Returns Att Yards Avg TD
80 Wilson 1 4 4.0 0
Kick Returns Att Yards Avg TD
21 Colclough 4 110 27.5 0
Punting Punts Yards Avg Long In20
17 Gardocki 2 80 40.0 45 1
Kicking FG FGA Long PAT Att
3 Reed 2 2 47 2 2
Defense Tackle Assist Sack Int IntYds IntTD
51 Farrior 10 1 1.0 0 0 0
94 Wallace 7 1 0.0 0 0 0
55 Porter 6 2 0.0 0 0 0
98 Hampton 3 2 0.0 0 0 0
91 Smith 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
43 Polamalu 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
67 Von Oelhoffen 2 1 0.0 0 0 0
21 Colclough 2 1 0.0 0 0 0
27 Williams 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
58 Gildon 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
23 Carter 1 1 0.0 0 0 0
57 Barrow 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
89 Bradford 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
81 Thompson 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
28 Hope 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
24 Taylor 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
83 Miller 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous Fumb FForc Recov MiscTD KeyRBlk SckAlwd
79 Essex 0 0 0 0 4 1
73 Simmons 0 0 0 0 5 0
77 Smith 0 0 0 0 4 0
22 Staley 2 0 1 0 0 0
35 Kreider 0 0 0 0 3 0
62 Peko 0 0 0 0 2 0
64 Hartings 0 0 0 0 1 0