Ben Roethlisberger led the Steelers to another Monday night win. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
PITTSBURGH — At home on “Monday Night Football,” the Pittsburgh Steelers are next to impossible to beat.
They proved it yet again with a stirring comeback, rallying from 13 points down in the first half to beat the Houston Texans 30-23.
The Steelers (4-3) won a record 16th consecutive Monday night home game, including an 8-0 mark at Heinz Field.
The Texans (3-4) dropped their third game in a row and fell for the fourth time in past five games after a 2-0 start.
Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell had 145 total yards and joined Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray as the only players in the NFL with 100-plus yards from scrimmage in every game this season.
Bell, who rushed for 57 yards on 12 carries, set career highs with 88 receiving yards on eight catches and snagged his first career touchdown reception on a 2-yard pass from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in the second quarter.
Roethlisberger’s two first-half touchdown passes and 265 passing yards helped the Steelers pull within one game of the first-place Baltimore Ravens (5-2) in the AFC North.
Houston quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick tossed a 1-yard scoring pass to running back Arian Foster with 1:31 remaining to draw the Texans within a touchdown.
Pittsburgh’s Shaun Suisham kicked field goals of 40 and 30 yards in the fourth quarter, and Houston’s Randy Bullock added a 31-yarder.
Foster, whose fumble late in the second quarter set up a Pittsburgh touchdown, finished with 102 yards on 20 carries. Fitzpatrick finished 21-for-32 for 262 yards with two touchdown passes and one interception.
The Steelers wiped out a 13-0 lead late in the second quarter, erupting for 24 points in a span of two minutes, 54 seconds to grab a 24-13 halftime lead.
Roethlisberger tossed touchdown passes of 35 yards to wide receiver Martavis Bryant — his first reception in his NFL debut — and 2 yards to Bell. Antonio Brown also threw a 3-yard scoring strike to fellow wide receiver Lance Moore, and Suisham added a 44-yard field goal.
Bullock had kicked field goals of 39 and 38 yards to stake Houston to a 13-0 lead in the second quarter.
The Texans, who scored on their first three possessions of the game, marched 94 yards on 10 plays on their opening series and grabbed a 7-0 lead on running back Alfred Blue’s first career touchdown catch, an 11-yard pass from Fitzpatrick.
NOTES: Houston DE J.J. Watt has three fumble recoveries this year, the top total in the NFL. … Steelers RB Le’Veon Bell became the first player in franchise history to compile more than 100 yards from scrimmage in each of the first seven games of a season. … Veteran Steelers DE Brett Keisel made his first start of the season and recorded his second career interception. … Pittsburgh RT Marcus Gilbert left the game in the second quarter with a possible concussion and did not return. He was replaced by Mike Adams. … Texans LB Jadeveon Clowney, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, was inactive. He has not played since Week 1 while recovering from knee surgery. … Pittsburgh will play host to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, while the Texans visit the Tennessee Titans.
