I'm still picking my jaw up from the floor after that one. The Steelers lost to Kansas City (yep, you read that right) after a 22-yard field goal by Ryan Succop in overtime. In overtime alone, QB Ben Roethlisberger got injured after a blow to the head on a short run (negated by a penalty, the Steelers had 8 of those for 85 yards, by the way), cornerback Ike Taylor dropped an interception that would've given the offense another shot to win the game, and the defense collapsed when QB Matt Cassel completed a short pass to Chris Chambers, who then proceeded to run 61 yards to set up the game-winning field goal. In summation: Nothing was good about that overtime.
You just knew that the game was going to be a struggle after the 97-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown. Clearly the adjustments made on special teams didn't work one bit. This is the fourth time an opposing team has returned a kickoff for a TD in five games. So amazingly pathetic, there are no words. The Steelers seemed to gain some momentum back during the first half, and Ben was able to shake tackles and not get sacked, showing how difficult it can be to knock him down. But then the Steelers blew a 17-7 lead when Kansas City scored 10 unanswered points in the third quarter, both from Steelers turnovers.
Andy Studebaker is a name that Steelers fans aren't likely to forget anytime soon. The offense was at the Chiefs' 10-yard line during the third quarter, driving to score, but Ben threw an interception and Studebaker ran it back for 94 yards. Kudos to running back Rashard Mendenhall for catching up to him and saving the TD, but it was awful to watch the Steelers throw away huge points like that. The only reason Studebaker was playing was because Mike Vrabel was injured. He also intercepted a pass meant for Heath Miller earlier in the game, when the ball popped up in the air and landed right in his hands. The guy just wouldn't go away.
After the Steelers defense finally committed a turnover in the fourth quarter (Lawrence Timmons sacked Cassel and James Harrison recovered the fumble), Ben threw a touchdown pass to Mendenhall, the first TD reception of his career. Looked like the game was over at that point. The defense turned the ball over and the Steelers were able to score because of it. Hey, that hadn't happened at all last week against the Cincinnati Bengals, and it was very nice to see. The feeling didn't last long, though.
All of a sudden, the KC offense got red-hot after struggling earlier in the game, and the defense couldn't step it up in the fourth quarter yet again. Cassel drove the offense down the field for 91 yards and scored a touchdown with 4:54 left, tying the score at 24-24. Big Ben and the offense couldn't produce a game-winning drive (again) and they went into overtime. Another epic fourth-quarter meltdown. Any progress that was made after huge wins against the Minnesota Vikings and Denver Broncos was totally negated after these losses against Cincinnati and Kansas City. I mean, come on! This is Kansas City!!
The Steelers amassed 463 yards compared to the Chiefs' 206 in regulation. Yet they still lost. The Steelers won the time of possession by 19 minutes in regulation. Yet they still lost. The offense simply couldn't shake off their earlier miscues and didn't adjust to a pumped up Kansas City defense when they had a chance to close it out for the win. Kansas City's defense is ridiculously awful, which makes this loss a thousand times worse. And, of course, kickoff returns for TDs tend to make a world of difference during these close games.
In other awesome Steelers news, a report on ESPN says that Troy Polamalu will most likely be out for a month. A whole month!! We really missed him today, and we're definitely going to miss him against the Baltimore Ravens next week. The defense just isn't the same when he isn't playing. Let's hope that Ben's injury isn't serious, but it did look like he was seeing stars while he was sitting on the bench. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that he feels okay. Thank goodness...it'd be devastating if Ben couldn't play next week.
This second consecutive loss dropped the Steelers to 6-4. They can't afford to lose anymore games, and considering they still have to play the Ravens twice, who put up a heroic effort against the still-undefeated Colts, the chances of making it to the postseason are quickly dissipating with every heartbreaking loss.
The Steelers proved to all of us that no game is a sure thing. Playing down to their opponents has been characteristic of this team all season. Games against opponents like Oakland, Cleveland, and Green Bay suddenly seem like they'll now become hard-fought battles instead of walks in the park. Next Sunday night will be a huge game for the Steelers. The Ravens would love to knock their rivals out of contention, paving the way for the Bengals (the Bengals!!!) to become the lone representatives of the AFC North. Losing to the Chiefs isn't something any Steelers fan will be able to get over soon. The ups and downs of this season have been torturous. We can only wait and see who shows up next Sunday night. And I hope no one will allow Troy to be on the cover of the Madden NFL game ever again.