The Pittsburgh Steelers are a tough team to figure out. While not playing nearly what anyone would label their best football, the team has won back-to-back games and are 4-2 heading into the Week 8 game vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars. Those visiting Jaguars are also a team which can be difficult to understand, but they came into the game riding a 4-game winning streak.

Something had to give between these two AFC teams, and the Steelers started with the football after Jacksonville won the coin toss and elected to defer their possession to the second half. On the first play, Kenny Pickett had Diontae Johnson down the seam, but Johnson wasn’t able to make the catch. A sack and incomplete pass ended the drive after just three plays.

Jacksonville had great field position for their first drive, and when it looked like the Steelers defense forced their own three-and-out, a late defensive pass interference call on James Pierre extended the drive. When all was said and done, it was a field goal which made the score 3-0 with 10:47 left in the opening quarter.

Another three-and-out by the Steelers gave the ball right back to Jacksonville. Just like the first drive, the Jaguars were able to only add a Brandon McManus field goal to make the score 6-0 with 5:54 remaining in the first quarter.

Despite gaining 8 yards on first down on the Steelers’ next drive, the team was unable to get a first down yet again. More questionable calls aided the Jaguars offense, but as they neared the red-zone it was Kwon Alexander who made the next big play. Alexander forced a fumble on Evan Engram, which was recovered by Cole Holcomb giving the Steelers the ball back.

.@kwon knocks it out & @ColeHolcomb_ scoops it up!

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— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) October 29, 2023

The Steelers did nothing with the extra possession, and Pressley Harvin III was called on to punt the ball away yet again. As Jacksonville continued to move the ball, they were faced with a red-zone opportunity. But just like their first red-zone chance, the drive resulted in a turnover. This time it was a Trevor Lawrence interception by Damontae Kazee.

We'll take that 💪

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— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) October 29, 2023

Kazee, instead of kneeling the ball in the end-zone, tried to take it out and was ruled out of bounds at the two. The Steelers, who hadn’t had a first down yet, drove 93 yards to set up a 3rd and goal, but Pickett’s pass to a slipping Diontae Johnson fell incomplete and resulted in a Chris Boswell chip shot to make the score 6-3.

Chris Boswell slipped on the kickoff, giving Jacksonville great field position. The Jaguars turned that field position into another field goal, making the score 9-3 with just over 1 minute left in the half and the Steelers with one timeout. What ensued was a strange sequence which saw the Steelers move into field goal range; however, a fumbled ball out of bounds, and a late hit on Kenny Pickett knocked him out of the game. When it looked like Chris Boswell nailed a 55-yard field goal to make the score 9-6, the officials called a lined up offsides on Pittsburgh. When all was said and done, it was 9-3 heading into halftime.

Jacksonville started the second half with the football, but the drive resulted in the team’s 3rd turnover of the game. The fumble recovery got the Steelers the ball back, but with Mitch Trubisky at quarterback, the Steelers offense failed to gain a first down before punting the ball back to Jacksonville.

With good field position, again, the Jacksonville Jaguars offense wasn’t going to stumble again. This time it was Trevor Lawrence hitting Travis Etienne for a 54-yard catch and run for the score. The Jaguars went for two, and completed it, making the score 17-3 with 5:05 left in the third quarter.

It looked like the game was out of reach, but Trubisky was able to move the ball down the field quickly with conversions to Jaylen Warren and Diontae Johnson. When the team was nearing the red-zone, Trubisky hit George Pickens for an incredible touchdown.

.@Mtrubisky10 ➡️ GP for the TD‼️

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— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) October 29, 2023

Boswell’s extra point made the score 17-10 as the teams headed into the 4th quarter.

It was more of the same for the Jacksonville offense, but this time it was all on the ground. The Jaguars were gashing the Steelers on the ground, and nearing field goal range. However, when they got on the cusp of McManus’ range, Trevor Lawrence was sacked and it forced a punt.

Trailing by 7, the Steelers looked to tie the game, but Trubisky trying to make a play downfield resulted in an interception. Shortly after the turnover, it was Evan Engram putting the dagger into the Steelers’ defense on a big catch and run setting up the Jaguars in the red-zone. McManus nailed a 37-yard field goal to make the score 20-10 with 4:35 left.

With two timeouts remaining, the Steelers didn’t even need to use them as the offense failed on 4th and 16. Turning it over on downs, and the Jaguars were able to ice away the game.

The loss moved the Steelers record to 4-3 on the season as they now prepare for the Tennessee Titans to invade Pittsburgh on a short week. Be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the team as they prepare for Thursday Night Football.