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    • TJ Watt, Steelers hold off Giants to win a Monday night game
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    TJ Watt, Steelers hold off Giants to win a Monday night game

    Vaseline Posted on

    TJ Watt is headed to the Pro Football Hall of Fame one day, and likely five years after his last NFL game. That is no longer an argument.

    No defensive player in the NFL means more to his team. When the Pittsburgh Steelers found themselves in a tough spot against the New York Giants on Monday night and nearing the end of an ugly performance, Watt took a chance to give them the win. It’s tough to depend on an edge rusher to make a game-winning play time and time again, but Watt has done it his entire career.

    Watt had a strip sack from Daniel Jones with 2:59 left and the Giants deep in Steelers territory, needing a touchdown and 2-point conversion to tie the game. That was the big play of the night, and an interception with 34 seconds left and the Giants in Steelers territory sealed it. The Steelers won 26-18, escaping a game against a bad Giants team in which the offense failed to light up the scoreboard. Pittsburgh is a surprising 6-2 this season, while the Giants are a predictable 2-6.

    Most division leaders are at the top of the standings with a star quarterback leading the way, whether it’s the Buffalo Bills with Josh Allen, the Washington Commanders with Jayden Daniels or the Kansas City Chiefs with Patrick Mahomes. The Steelers don’t have a quarterback like that, but they keep winning. A big reason is they have Watt to make plays like he did Monday night.

    To give an indication of how the first half went, the biggest talking point was the touchdowns that didn’t count.

    The Steelers had a George Pickens touchdown called back due to a facemask penalty on tackle Broderick Jones. Then the Giants appeared to have a touchdown to tight end Chris Manhertz, but there was an illegal shift on Malik Nabers. ESPN rules analyst Russell Yurk explained that this was technically the right call, but it seemed like the kind of foul that is rarely flagged.

    In the second quarter, Pickens caught what looked like another touchdown. The NFL watched the replay and saw that Pickens never got his second foot on the ground. It was incomplete and the Steelers settled for their third field goal of the night and a 9-6 lead.

    At halftime the game was 9-9. New York fans might have turned on the Yankees game earlier. Then the Knicks game. Then they probably went to bed.

    Finally there was something to break the boredom. Calvin Austin III kicked outside the right marker, came all the way back to the left sideline and no one on the Giants took the right angle to catch it. He returned it 73 yards for a touchdown, the first of the game, and the Steelers led 16–9. Austin followed that up with a 29-yard touchdown reception early in the fourth quarter. It looked like a fourteen-point lead would be far too much for the Giants to overcome.

    But the Giants finally got a spark. Tyrone Tracy burst through for a 45-yard touchdown, the first time in a few weeks the Giants had something to be excited about on offense. That cut the Steelers’ lead to 23-15. Then the Giants followed that up with an embarrassing two-point conversion where they lined up their linemen wide and no one responded to the snap, allowing the Steelers to easily break up a quick pass.

    The Steelers couldn’t quite put away the Giants. A long pass to Pickens got the Steelers into the red zone, but they settled for another field goal. The Giants got a field goal back and then, with 4:30 to go, the door swung open for them to win the game, with Pittsburgh leading by eight. Wilson tried to scramble and as he was running he was hit and lost a fumble. The Giants had the ball on the Pittsburgh 37-yard line. They were driving when Watt, inexplicably, was not double-teamed. He beat the right tackle, hit Jones and caused a fumble that was recovered by Pittsburgh. It was Watt’s second sack of the game and he has 6.5 on the season. He has won one NFL Defensive Player of the Year award and could be in line for another this season.

    The Giants got a stop and another chance to tie the game, but they had the ball on their own 7-yard line with no timeouts. Jones rallied the Giants in the field, but a high throw was picked off and the Steelers won.

    The Steelers aren’t pretty, but they’re winning. They lead the AFC North at 6-2 and while the offense still has work to do, it has been solid with Wilson at quarterback. And when all else fails, Watt usually makes plays at exactly the right time the Steelers need.

    LIVE DECLARATION IS OVER45 updates

    • Final: Steelers 26, Giants 18

      The Steelers have now won three in a row and now have a 6-2 record. The Giants, on the other hand, have lost three straight games and four of their last five.

    • Steelers INT to seal the game

      And that should do it. Beanie Bishop just intercepted Daniel Jones after a pretty solid start to the drive, and Pittsburgh will come out and take a knee.

    • Well, the Giants get one last chance. They stopped Wilson during a scramble to force a fourth-and-2, leading to a Steelers punt right after the two-minute warning.

      Daniel Jones will now have to cover over 90 yards with just 1:53 left in the game.

    • Steelers steal it right back

      TJ Watt just sacked Daniel Jones to force a fumble of his own, and the Steelers got the ball right back. That’s a huge defensive stand for Pittsburgh to hold onto their lead with 2:59 to go.

    • Giants force a fumble

      Russell Wilson just lost the ball trying to scramble, and the Giants suddenly have the ball back at the Steelers 37.

    • Steelers 26, Giants 18

      Daniel Jones led the Giants into scoring position, but Malik Nabers dropped a pass that would have given them a first down. They settled for a 48-yard field goal and will need a quick stop here with just 5:06 left on the clock.

    • Steelers 26, Giants 15

      Ojulari sacked Russell Wilson on third and goal, leaving the Steelers to settle for a field goal. They now lead by 11 with 7:15

    • Russell Wilson handles in the second half. He just hit George Pickens for a 43-yard gain, putting the Steelers back in scoring position.

    • This two-point conversion attempt was…not good.

    • Touchdown, giants

      Ultimately, the Giants struck back. Tyrone Tracy just burst open a 45-yard touchdown run to get the Giants on the board in the second half.

      They missed the two-point conversion, so the Steelers now lead 23-15 with 11:07 to go.

    • Calvin Austin again!

      Russell Wilson found Calvin Austin for his second touchdown of the night. Austin hit the corner of the end zone and landed a perfect 29-yard touchdown grab.

      The Steelers now lead 23-9 early in the fourth.

    • End 3: Steelers 16, Giants 9

      The Steelers have suddenly taken full control of this game. Russell Wilson just hit Van Jefferson for a huge 36-yard gain to end the quarter and put them in scoring position.

    • Touchdown, Steelers

      That was a perfect punt return for Calvin Austin, who reached the left sideline and ran it back 73 yards for the game’s first touchdown. The Steelers lead 16-9.

    • After having to kick themselves, Highsmith sacked Daniel Jones again deep in their own territory. The Steelers will get the ball back after the Giants come back here to punt in the third quarter.

    • Finally here comes TJ Watt. He came up with a huge sack to force a punt and slow down the Giants’ first drive of the half.

    • Tyrone Tracy Jr. runs for 26 yards

      Giants get the ball to open the second half. On their second play of the drive, Tyrone Tracy Jr. burst. through the middle for a gain of 26 yards.

    • Statistics at half time

      Giants

      Total offense: 183 yards

      Daniel Jones: 11-16, 141 yards

      Darius Slayton: 3 catches, 90 yards

      Tyrone Tracy Jr.: 9 rushes, 35 yards

      Greg Joseph: 3-for-3 field goals

      Steelers

      Total offense: 237 yards

      Russell Wilson: 12-19, 149 yards

      Najee Harris: 10 rushes, 82 yards

      Jaylen Warren: 6 rushes, 22 yards/3 catches, 31 yards

      Chris Boswell: 3-for-3 field goals

    • Halftime: Giants 9, Steelers 9

      The Steelers don’t run out the clock and Russell Wilson completes two passes for 16 yards. But without timeouts, Pittsburgh can’t stop the clock.

      Giants 9, Steelers 9 at half

    • Field goal: Giants 9, Steelers 9

      The Giants are unable to convert a 3rd and 5 with a pass to Eric Gray that lasts only three yards before being pushed out of bounds.

      On 4th and 2 from the 25 yard line and one timeout, Brian Daboll opts not to go for it with 25 seconds left. Greg Joseph makes his third field goal of the game, this one from 44 yards.

    • Daniel Jones to Darius Slayton for 36 yards

      What started as a two-minute conservative drill for the Giants now looks promising as Daniel Jones hits Darius Slayton for a 36-yard gain on 3rd-and-8 from the Steelers’ 45-yard line.

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