PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Oakland Raiders Sunday to move into position for an AFC wild card berth, but to stay in contention they will rely on interim starting quarterback Landry Jones, who makes his second career start Sunday against the Cleveland Browns.
One week after returning from a four-week absence due to a knee sprain, starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger suffered a foot sprain Sunday against the Raiders and it will force him to miss at least one game, maybe more.
The Steelers play the Browns in the final game of a three-game homestand, before their off week. They then travel to play Seattle Nov. 29. Initial reports suggest Roethlisberger will miss a couple of weeks, but his timetable will depend upon how well he responds to treatment for his sprain.
“Landry works hard just like everyone else,” receiver Martavis Bryant said. “We have confidence in him, but at the same time our prayers are for Ben.”
Jones came on to lead the Steelers to a 38-35 victory after Roethlisberger left the game. With the score tied late, Jones hit Antonio Brown for a 57-yard reception that set up the winning field goal from Chris Boswell.
Jones is 0-1 as a starter – the Steelers fell at Kansas City, 23-13, in his only NFL start – but Jones has been money in games when he’s come in late off the bench. He led a come-from-behind victory over the Arizona Cardinals in mid-October when he came on for an injured Mike Vick and threw two second-half touchdown passes to Bryant.
The trick now for Jones is to translate that late-game magic into some consistent play early in the game as a starter. Against the Chiefs, Jones threw two interceptions and lost a fumble.
Against the Raiders, Jones was 4 for 6 for 79 yards in a victory that puts the Steelers, at least for now, in the playoffs as the No. 6 seed.
“It gives you confidence,” Jones said of his late-game heroics. “The more you can play, the more you get in, the more comfortable you get.”
The Browns enter the game with a 2-7 record, but they have played the Steelers tough in recent years. They beat the Steelers, 31-10, in Cleveland last season and fell by three points in Pittsburgh. And the Steelers will be playing with four reserves on offense at arguably the four most important positions – quarterback, tailback, center and left tackle.
“I joke around with it,” offensive lineman Ramon Foster said. “I say, ‘I don’t know who ticked off the football gods, but they’re definitely letting us have it this year with the injuries.’ We’ve got to stay the course.”
Only time will tell if the Steelers are able to absorb the latest blow to their offense. At least this time the prognosis for Roethlisberger is much better than his previous knee injury.
–The Steelers had two players eclipse 200 yards from scrimmage for the first time in franchise history against the Raiders. Receiver Antonio Brown had 306 scrimmage yards and running back DeAngelo Williams 225. The 531 yards combined are the most in the NFL by two teammates since 1960, and they bested the previous mark by 50 yards. The old record was held by Oakland’s Art Powell and Clem Daniels, who had 481 yards from scrimmage against Houston in 1963.
–The Steelers became the first franchise in NFL history to have three coaches win 50 regular-season home game wins. Mike Tomlin picked up his 50th victory over the Raiders at Heinz Field on Sunday. Bill Cowher had 85 home victories and Hall of Famer Chuck Noll had 119 home wins.
–Before leaving the game in the third quarter with a foot injury, Roethlisberger threw for 334 yards and moved into 14th place on the NFL’s all-time list for passing yards. He passed Hall of Famers Johnny Unitas (40,239) and Joe Montana (40,551). Roethlisberger now has 40,565 yards. If he can get healthy, Roethlisberger could catch Kerry Collins (40,922) for 13th place before the end of the season. Roethlisberger also became the ninth quarterback in NFL history to record 40 300-yard passing games with one team.
— Brown’s 17 receptions in a single game are tied for the fifth-most in NFL history since 1960, his 284 receiving yards are seventh-most in a single game since 1960 and his 306 scrimmage yards are also seventh-most in a game since 1960.
–Running back DeAngelo Williams, making his third start of the season, rushed for 170 yards and had 225 yards total from scrimmage. He recorded the 50th rushing touchdown of his career, becoming the sixth active running back to post 50 rushing touchdowns.
–Rookie tight end Jesse James dressed for an NFL game for the first time, and it was a memorable debut. James, who played in high school at nearby South Allegheny High School and at Penn State, caught a touchdown pass and made a key block on Martavis Bryant’s 15-yard touchdown catch. James dressed because backup tight end Matt Spaeth missed the game with a knee injury.
–Cornerback Ross Cockrell, who was picked up from Buffalo after the Bills cut him at the end of training camp, recorded his second interception and is tied for the team lead along with Antwon Blake and Mike Mitchell.