Ben Roethlisberger

Coronavirus protocols kept Roethlisberger away from Pittsburgh's team facility all week, but the star quarterback led the unbeaten Steelers to a 36-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.

Kyler Murray's throw saw the Cardinals claim a stunning last-gasp 32-30 success against the Buffalo Bills, while Cam Newton enjoyed a memorable outing as the New England Patriots upstaged the Baltimore Ravens.

STEELERS STAY PERFECT

There is no stopping the Steelers through nine games of the 2020 season.

Roethlisberger – one of four Steelers placed on the COVID-19 list at the start of the week – threw for a season-high 333 yards and four touchdowns, completing 27 of 46 passes.

The two-time Super Bowl champion connected with Diontae Johnson and JuJu Smith-Schuster in the first half, before throwing TD passes to Chase Claypool twice in the second half.

T.J. Watt sacked Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow twice – he had two sacks, four QB hits and two tackles for loss. T.J. Watt and J.J. Watt (2015) are the only players over the past 15 seasons to record nine-plus sacks, 25-plus quarterback hits and 10-plus tackles for loss in their team's first nine games of a season, per NFL Research.

It was a tough outing for number one pick Burrow, who was 21 of 40 for 213 yards, a touchdown and four sacks as the Bengals fell to 2-6-1.

CARDINALS CLAIM LAST-GASP WIN

Murray made NFL history after combining with DeAndre Hopkins for an incredible game-winning touchdown for the Cardinals.

Murray's 43-yard pass was brilliantly caught by Hopkins in the endzone with two seconds remaining to secure a victory for the Cardinals, who improved to 6-3 after scoring 17 unanswered points, having trailed the Bills 23-9.

The top pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, Murray's throw to Hopkins was his only touchdown pass, as he finished 22 of 32 for 245 yards.

According to Stats Perform, Murray became the first player in NFL history with a pass TD and a rush TD in five straight games, thanks to his pass to Hopkins.

Murray also joined Newton as the only QBs in NFL history with 6,000-plus pass yards and 1,000-plus rush yards in their first 25 career games, as per NFL Research.

NEWTON'S PATS SILENCE JACKSON AND RAVENS

The Patriots may be struggling following the departure of Tom Brady, but Bill Belichick's side shocked the Ravens 23-17 for back-to-back wins.

Newton became the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era with nine rushing touchdowns in his first eight games of a season, according to NFL Research.

The former MVP rushed for one TD and 21 yards, while he was 13-of-17 passing for 118 yards and another touchdown in New England, where the Patriots (4-5) rallied.

With seven weeks still remaining, 2020 is already the first season in league history in which two quarterbacks – Newton (nine) and Murray (10) – have each had nine-plus rushing TDs.

Baltimore star and reigning MVP Lamar Jackson was 24 of 34 for 249 yards, two touchdowns and an interception as the Ravens fell to 6-3.

RAMS TAKE DOWN WILSON'S SEAHAWKS, BREES INJURY OVERSHADOWS SAINTS WIN

The Los Angeles Rams smothered Seattle Seahawks star quarterback Russell Wilson and won 23-16.

Wilson did not throw a touchdown, finishing 22 of 37 passing for 248 yards and two interceptions as the Rams (6-3) stifled the high-flying Seahawks (6-3).

The NFC South-leading New Orleans Saints topped the San Francisco 49ers 27-13 but it came at a cost on home soil.

Drew Brees suffered a rib injury in the first half and is set to undergo an MRI and X-Ray after taking a hit from 49ers defensive tackle Kentavius Street before being replaced by Jameis Winston at half-time.

Brees threw a touchdown, the 41-year-old finishing eight of 13 for 76 yards as the Saints eventually improved to 7-2 for the season.

Week 10 scores:

Cleveland Browns 10-7 Houston Texans
Detroit Lions 30-27 Washington Football Team
Green Bay Packers 24-20 Jacksonville Jaguars
New York Giants 27-17 Philadelphia Eagles
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 46-23 Carolina Panthers
Pittsburgh Steelers 36-10 Cincinnati Bengals
Los Angeles Rams 23-16 Seattle Seahawks
New Orleans Saints 27-13 San Francisco 49ers
Arizona Cardinals 32-30 Buffalo Bills
Las Vegas Raiders 37-12 Denver Broncos
Miami Dolphins 29-21 Los Angeles Chargers
New England Patriots 23-17 Baltimore Ravens

The 39-year-old quarterback stated earlier this month that he would not discuss retirement until the end of this season.

Roethlisberger is reported to have told former team-mates and people within the franchise that he expects to bring his illustrious career to an end when the campaign is over.

The Steelers great, a winner of two Super Bowls, on Thursday refused to confirm he will quit, but gave a strong indication his playing days are almost over as Pittsburgh strive to sneak into the playoffs.

He said: "I don't ever speak in definites or guarantees, that's not what I've ever done or who I am. But, looking at the bigger picture, I would say that all signs are pointing to this could be it.

"Regular season that is, I know we still have a chance to potentially get a playoff game there if things fall our way and we take care of business and things have to happen.

"But, in the grand scheme of things, in terms of regular seasons, signs are pointing that way this could be it."

He added: "I'll address the definite answer for that at some point down the road. But like I said, my focus is winning this game.

"If it is indeed my last regular-season game here, it's going to be one of the most important games of my career. I've been so blessed to play in front of the best fans in all of sports at the best venue, and what better way to have a last potential regular-season game than Monday Night Football against a division opponent.

"It's just special. So, the long-winded answer is I got a lot of focus on still for this year and this game, and that's got to be it right now."

The six-time Pro Bowler has spent an incredible 18 years with the Steelers and has 163 career wins to his name, a record in the NFL for players who have spent their entire career with one team.

Tom Brady is the only quarterback to have won more games with a single franchise, racking up 219 victories for the New England Patriots.

Roethlisberger has celebrated 91 victories at Heinz Field, 82 more than the next best for a QB of nine recorded by Kordell Stewart since the stadium opened in 2001.

Steelers president Art Rooney II issued a statement on Wednesday indicating the team's desire to have Roethlisberger back for an 18th season with the franchise, adding that they will soon enter negotiations to adjust the longtime quarterback's contract. 

"Ben Roethlisberger and I met [Tuesday] morning and we had a productive meeting. We were able to discuss a lot of things that relate to where we are and where we want to go," Rooney stated.

"Ben assured me that he is committed to coming back to help us win, and I told Ben that we would like to have him back to win a championship. We both understand that the next step is to work out Ben's contract situation.

"We owe it to him to have a conversation about how he wants to end his career, and we intend to that."

Rooney's remarks come one day after Roethlisberger's agent, Ryan Tollner, told NFL.com that the Steelers are open to his client's return on a renegotiated contract. The two-time Super Bowl champion carries a $41.25 million cap hit for 2021, the highest of any player, with the salary cap expected to decrease due to revenue lost as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"As we've shared since the season ended, we are happy to creatively adjust his contract to help them build the best team possible," Tollner said. 

Roethlisberger turns 39 in March and has drawn widespread speculation about his future due to his advanced age and Pittsburgh's current lack of salary cap flexibility, as well as a decline in play during the second half of a 2020 season that ended with a disappointing home loss to the Cleveland Browns in the AFC Wild Card Playoff round.

Making a successful comeback from a career-threatening elbow injury that limited him to two games in 2019, Roethlisberger threw for 22 touchdowns and only four interceptions while producing a 103.0 passer rating through his first nine starts of last season – all Pittsburgh wins.

The six-time Pro Bowler was intercepted six times and had an 83.2 rating over his next six starts, however, as the Steelers went 3-3 and eventually dropped to the AFC's No. 3 playoff seed. 

Roethlisberger did set an NFL postseason record with 47 completions while throwing for 501 yards and four touchdowns in Pittsburgh’s lone playoff game, but was picked off four times as the Steelers were dealt a 48-37 loss to the rival Browns.

Roethlisberger is gearing up for his 18th season with the Steelers after the 39-year-old agreed a new restructured contract in Pittsburgh, where he will make his first preseason appearance against the Detroit Lions.

The two-time Super Bowl champion and seven-time Pro Bowler is relishing the opportunity to work alongside new offensive coordinator Matt Canada and quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan.

"We have a new system," Roethlisberger told reporters of the need to play against the Lions. "There's a new coach to player communication in terms of a new guy. The offense is different. He's up in the box as compared to on the field.

"There is a lot of newness. I think it's prudent to get as much time as I can under those circumstances."

"I would love to get as many reps as I can," said Roethlisberger. "It's been how many months since I've actually stepped on the football field to take a hit? I know it's preseason, but still just meaningful reps. With the newness of it I'd definitely like to get as much as I can.

"I guess it depends on how we're doing, how it feels. I really wanted to try and play last week because it was on the road and that would have been our first opportunity to play on the road and the situation, with circumstances like crowd noise and things like that before we go into a very hostile environment in week one. But coach, I couldn't talk him into it."

Roethlisberger helped Pittsburgh – who have one of the best defenses in the NFL – to an incredible 11-0 start last season.

But they ran out of steam badly down the stretch, losing four of their last five to finish 12-4 before a stunning 48-37 Wild Card playoff defeat to divisional rivals the Cleveland Browns.

Roethlisberger was coming back from a serious elbow injury which saw him miss all but two games of the 2019 campaign.

His play was steady but unspectacular, leading a Steelers offense that averaged 250.5 net passing yards per game, 15th best in the NFL.

Roethlisberger threw for 3,803 yards, 33 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 15 games, with a 94.1 passer rating (19th among qualifying QBs).

At 9.65 yards per completion – the lowest rate in the league – the veteran was more of a game manager than the downfield threat of old.

Roethlisberger added: "The challenge of newness. I spent a lot of time at home, going over it, reading it, watching film. I was telling my wife the other night that I think maybe it's even better that there's some new stuff because it almost refocuses you in a way.

"If this was still the same stuff, I would probably go home and be like okay I'll watch the film and be ready to move on. But last night I watched the film, and I went back over everything again to refresh my mind. I think because it's different. I want to make sure that I'm not the reason that we struggle."

Roethlisberger's yards per attempt average of 6.3 was the lowest of his career across seasons in which he has played double-digit games – it was 5.7 in his two appearances in 2019.

He had 43 pass plays that went for 20 yards or more, tied for 17th, though yards after catch was clearly a massive contributor to those plays. Pittsburgh ranked eighth with 50.4 per cent of the Steelers' gross passing yardage made up by yards after the catch.

His passer rating of 81.0 on throws of at least 21 air yards was 18th among quarterbacks with 25 such attempts and he completed only 30.2 per cent of those attempts (22nd of 28 QBs with a minimum of 25 attempts).

"Some of the new concepts I'll have it and I'll go home and I'll look at it and I'm like wait, what is this guy…if you think about it on every pass play for instance, I have to know what five guys are doing. It's not just one guy or just what I'm doing," he continued.

"So, I have to know who the hot is and what each specific guy is doing so there'll be times that I know what maybe three of them are doing and will be like, 'Wait, what's this guy doing again.' I just have to just try and refresh in my mind."

The team announced the move late Saturday, and Mason Rudolph is expected to start in Roethlisberger's place. 

Roethlisberger landed on the COVID-19 list the same day another veteran quarterback, Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers, was activated after missing last week's game at the Kansas City Chiefs. 

Rudolph figures to have an easier assignment than Rodgers' backup Jordan Love did, with Pittsburgh (5-3) hosting the winless Lions (0-8) Sunday. 

The 26-year-old Steelers backup has not played this season but started one game last year and eight games as a rookie in 2019 after Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending elbow injury. 

Roethlisberger, 39, said in a recent interview that he has received the coronavirus vaccine. He could return for Pittsburgh's November 21 game at the Los Angeles Chargers. 

Roethlisberger missed last week's clash with the Detroit Lions, which finished 16-16 after overtime, but the Steelers' director of communications Burt Lauten confirmed on Saturday that the 39-year-old will be back for Sunday's meeting with the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Steelers are 5-3-1 and second in the AFC North, though Roethlisberger's absence was felt against the Lions.

Mason Rudolph started in his place, but missed a glut of opportunities to deliver touchdown passes, including a late throw into the dirt that should have put Ray-Ray McCloud into the endzone.

Rudolph threw for, 242 yards, one touchdown, one interception and registered a completion percentage of 60.

While Rudolph told ESPN on Thursday that he was preparing to start against the Chargers, it appears he will be back on the bench, with Roethlisberger able to return to action.

Roethlisberger, a two-time Super Bowl champion, has thrown for 1,986 yards and 10 touchdowns so far this season across eight games.

The Steelers were the last team to be unbeaten in the regular season before finishing 12-4 but committed three turnovers in the first quarter at Heinz Field, Karl Joseph returning Maurkice Pouncey's fumble for a touchdown on the opening drive and Roethlisberger throwing two interceptions.

It was the first time Pittsburgh committed three turnovers in the first quarter under Roethlisberger across his 17 seasons with the team, with the Browns taking full advantage to surge into a 28-0 lead.

The 38-year-old finished the game 47-of-68 passing for 501 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions, but the damage had already been down.

Roethlisberger has one year remaining on his contract worth $41.2million and is yet to make a decision on whether he will return next season.

"It's going to start between me and God, a lot of praying. A lot of talking with my family, discussions, decisions," said Roethlisberger.

"I still have a year left on my contract. I hope the Steelers want me back, if that's the way we go. There will be a lot of discussions. But now is not the time for that.

"This loss is fresh. It's just sitting on our hearts and our minds right now. It will for a while."

On his performance, he added: "It wasn't good enough. When you lose a game like this, you can look back and evaluate all you want on the season, how you did during this game, that game, runs, stretches. I mean, at some point we'll look back on the whole thing.

"But when it doesn't end the way you want it to, you're always going to feel some kind of way, like you came up short or it's your fault."

The Steelers have not won a playoff game since 2016, with their past three appearances in the postseason ending in defeat. For the Browns, it was a first playoff victory since 1994.

Asked if he was accountable for Pittsburgh's recent failures, head coach Mike Tomlin replied: "It is what it is. Our record is our record. Our performances are our performances. Don't run away from that.

"We didn't perform well enough. Not coaching, not playing. You can chalk it up to the turnover game. But we weren't good enough in a lot of other areas, communication, in terms of detail. Just not a good night for us.

"In the single elimination tournaments, when you don't have a good night, you go home."

Roethlisberger revealed in January that he is planning to return for an 18th NFL season, ideally with the Steelers.

The 38-year-old's current deal would see him count for $41.25million against the salary cap in Pittsburgh.

As question marks remain over the two-time Super Bowl champion, Tollner provided an update on Tuesday.

"They want Ben back and will contact me soon to address his cap situation," Tollner NFL Network's Aditi Kinkhabwala.

"As we've shared since the season ended, we are happy to creatively adjust his contract to help them build the best team possible. A year ago, Ben wasn't sure if he could throw again, but he battled back to get 12 wins and the eighth division title of his career.

"They lost steam down the stretch and that doesn't sit well for him, so the fire burns strong and there is plenty of gas in the tank."

Roethlisberger threw for 3,803 yards with 33 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 2020, helping the Steelers finish the regular season with a 12-4 record that was enough to win the AFC North.  

However, after reaching 11-0 at one stage, Pittsburgh suffered a late-season slump that continued into the playoffs, as the Steelers lost 48-37 to divisional rivals the Cleveland Browns in the Wild Card round.  

A six-time Pro Bowl selection, Roethlisberger threw four touchdowns and 501 yards but was also picked off four times in the defeat to the Browns on January 10. 

Chris Boswell's 40-yard field goal lifted the Steelers (5-3) as Cairo Santos' last-gasp 65-yard effort fell short in Pittsburgh on Monday.

Justin Fields had led the rallying Bears (3-6) to a 27-26 lead with less than two minutes remaining, dazzling with a 16-yard pass to Darnell Mooney during the closing stages as Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers were left with work to do.

Roethlisberger (21-of-30 passing for 205 yards and two touchdowns) fuelled a seven-play drive to get Boswell into position for the game-winning kick – the Steelers snapping a three-game skid against the Bears as Santos, who had made 40 consecutive field goals, four short of the all-time record, failed in his reply.

No team in NFL history had more wins on Mondays than the Steelers entering the contest and they set out to extend that run after Najee Harris' 10-yard rush gave the hosts a 7-0 lead at the end of the opening quarter.

The Steelers continued to dominate – Roethlisberger throwing touchdown passes to Pat Freiermuth in the second and third quarters for a commanding 20-6 advantage heading into the final period.

T.J. Watt also reached 60 career sacks in his 69th appearance, with only three players reaching the mark in fewer games – Hall of Famers Reggie White and Derrick Thomas, and brother J.J. Watt.

Chicago erased the deficit behind Mooney, who rushed for a score and caught Fields' (17-of-29 passing for 291 yards, a TD and interception) throw in the fourth quarter, but the Steelers had all the answers in a tight finish.

Switzer, fellow receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner were part of the workout with Roethlisberger, who said earlier in the offseason that he had been holding back during rehab to strengthen the elbow without overworking it.

"You know, like when the ball cuts through the air and you can hear that 'pfft-pfft-pfft' sound," Switzer told The Athletic.

"That's what JuJu said it sounded like.  I didn't hear it but, man, I have been trying to catch with no gloves for a couple of months to build up these callouses but ask my hands how they feel catching his throws."

Switzer has participated in sessions with Roethlisberger since February, so he knows exactly how much progress the quarterback has made.

"It's leaps and bounds different from when he first started," Switzer said. "There was no restraint, no hesitancy, he was just out there. He has been throwing like that for a while, and in my opinion at least, getting out there on that field for the first time and throwing full-speed routes was refreshing."

Roethlisberger will be entering his 17th NFL season and ranks fifth among active quarterbacks with 363 passing touchdowns and fourth with 56,545 yards.

Brady is about to embark on a new venture after 20 golden years in the NFL alongside Belichick at the New England Patriots.

In total, Brady won six Super Bowls and nine AFC Championships in an astounding spell of dominance with the Patriots.

He now links up with Arians in Tampa Bay, a coach whose penchant for aggressive offense and a "no risk it, no biscuit" approach is at odds with the more calculating style of Belichick. 

Arians is a man well known to Roethlisberger having spent four years as Offensive Coordinator at the Pittsburgh Steelers and seven with the team in total.

Roethlisberger described Arians as a father figure and has no doubt superstar quarterback Brady will relish working under him as well.

Speaking to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Roethlisberger said: "B.A. is a great quarterbacks coach and a great players' coach.

"Tom is going to love it there. Talk about going from opposite ends of the spectrum with coaches."

Roethlisberger was surprised to see Brady end such a lengthy and successful association with the Patriots.

"I thought for sure he would go back," Roethlisberger added. "But sometimes, there might be deeper wounds than people might realise. I don't know if that's the case or not. "

Tampa Bay's Offensive Coordinator Byron Leftwich is a former team-mate of Roethlisberger.

Roethlisberger reached out to ask how he plans to go about coaching one of the greats. 

"I asked him what he's going to do now that he's coaching the GOAT," he said.

"He texted right back, 'Just stay out of his way'."

Roethlisberger, 38, underwent surgery on his right elbow in September last year, playing just two games during the 2019 season.

But the two-time Super Bowl champion is making progress and Tomlin feels the star QB will be ready to go when the new campaign begins.

"As we sit here today, we're extremely confident in his readiness. We're enjoying the process that he's going through right now," Tomlin told NFL Network on Thursday.

"Obviously he's not without his angst, the guy's coming off of a season-ending injury and surgery, but we like where we are.

"He's throwing on the rehab schedule, it's going well and we fully anticipate him being ready to go for that opener."

The NFL schedule was released on Thursday, with the Steelers beginning their season against the New York Giants on September 14.

"I've been at it a while. I haven't seen a schedule that I didn't like, particularly this time of year," Tomlin said.

"We're all football lovers and we miss competing so it's an exciting day when the schedule comes out."

The unbeaten Steelers improved to 10-0 following Sunday's 27-3 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field.

Pittsburgh – who have not won the Super Bowl since 2008 following their loss to the Green Bay Packers in 2010 – are well clear of the Cleveland Browns (7-3) atop the AFC North.

The Steelers have also recorded 24-plus points in 10 consecutive regular-season games, the longest streak in single-season franchise history, but Tomlin is refusing to get carried away.

"We did the job today. We checked the boxes," said Tomlin. "It wasn't perfect. But nothing is perfect about us except our record.

"We talked openly about that last night. We want to wear it the proper way. We want to step into stadiums and be prepared to fight and compete every week and understand that we are going to get people's best shot.

"So, I liked the general attitude today. We were able to get the job done and we will get ready for our short week."

Steelers star Ben Roethlisberger completed 32 of 46 passes for 267 yards, two touchdowns and an interception away to the Jaguars in Jacksonville.

The Steelers quarterback now has eight career seasons with double-digit wins, tying Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and John Elway for fourth-most in the league, per NFL Research.

The only players with more are Tom Brady (17), Peyton Manning (14) and Brett Favre (10).

"Just focus on one week at a time, and that's what this team has done," two-time Super Bowl champion Roethlisberger said. "We're not chasing perfection, we're chasing a Lombardi [Trophy]."

Pittsburgh's attention now turns to the AFC North showdown against the Baltimore Ravens (6-4) on Thursday.

"We are back in the AFC North, in the hot kitchen on Thursday night and we are honoured to do that, to entertain on that special day and be a part of that," said Tomlin.

"We don't take that for granted. We have some work ahead of us."

The Steelers improved to 11-0 – the 13th team to achieve the feat in the Super Bowl era – courtesy of Wednesday's hard-fought 19-14 victory over the Lamar Jackson-less Baltimore Ravens.

It was a scrappy encounter at Heinz Field, where the clash went ahead after being rescheduled three times due to a coronavirus outbreak within the Ravens organisation.

The Steelers stand alone in the NFL, but head coach Tomlin was far from impressed with his team's performance.

"It was really junior varsity, to be quite honest with you," Tomlin said post-game. "It was in all three phases. We couldn't run the ball effectively when we needed to.

"We dropped too many significant passes, very catchable, makeable passes. We didn't make significant plays in the special teams game.

"Our kick-off coverage unit wasn't good enough. We turned the ball over. We gave up big plays in critical moments on defense. Can't have it."

Tomlin continued: "[The Ravens] converted a long run on a possession down before the half. Unacceptable. They had a 70-yard touchdown late in the game. Unacceptable.

"We're fortunate tonight. It's good to proceed with the victory. I acknowledge that. But not a lot happened tonight to be proud of or to be excited about other than that."

"We make no excuses," he said. "We seek no comfort. We didn't play well, coach well tonight."

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger completed 36 of 51 passes for 266 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Roethlisberger was 13-0 as a starter in 2004, now he is 11-0 this season. The two-time Super Bowl champion joined Peyton Manning (2005 and 2009) as the only QBs since at least 1950 to win each of their first 11 starts in a season twice, per NFL Research.

According to Stats Perform, Roethlisberger is also the first quarterback to have four consecutive games with 250-plus passing yards and no sacks taken since Dan Marino in 1988.

"I need to be more accurate with my passes," Roethlisberger said. "I need to give them better chances to make the plays. There weren't some plays made today when they needed to be."

The Vikings had led 29-0 midway through the third quarter before Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led a remarkable fightback that included three final quarter touchdowns but they left it too late to slump to a 6-6-1 record with only one win in their past five games.

Trailing 36-28 with three seconds on the clock, Roethlisberger threw for Pat Freiermuth in the end-zone but the tight end could not hold the pass under pressure from Vikings safety Harrison Smith despite getting two hands to the ball.

The Vikings had jumped the Steelers with three first-half touchdowns, as Kirk Cousins found Justin Jefferson wide open, before running back Dalvin Cook crossed twice in the second period.

Back-to-back Greg Joseph field goals extended their lead to 29 points in the third quarter before the Steelers responded with Roethlisberger finding Najee Harris in the corner for a TD.

Rookie Harris scored his sixth rushing touchdown of the season early in the last quarter, before Roethlisberger found James Washington down the middle to make it 29-20 with 12 minutes to play.

Minnesota immediately responded with KJ Osborn scoring in a 62-yard play from Cousins, who made 14 of 31 attempts for 216 and two touchdowns, only for Freiermuth to narrow the gap again, with Diontae Johnson completing the two-point conversion to make it a one-play game.

Pittsburgh almost completed a remarkable comeback as Freiermuth could not grasp the last-ditch throw from Roethlisberger who completed 28 of 40 attempts for 308 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.

Despite the offense struggling, Pittsburgh forced four turnovers against a Titans side who continue to lead the AFC South but slip to 9-5 with this setback.

Linebacker T.J. Watt had 1.5 sacks to reach 17.5 for the season, establishing a new Steelers record as the home team improved to 7-6-1, getting the better of a side that blanked the Jaguars 20-0 last week.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin hailed the effort from his team to overcome their shortcomings and capitalise on their strengths, with Chris Boswell kicking four field goals and Ben Roethlisberger snatching a rare touchdown.

Roethlisberger (16-of-25 for 148 yards) also went fifth on the all-time NFL passing yards list in this game, jumping ahead of Philip Rivers with a three-yard pass to Najee Harris and boosting his career total to 63,562 yards by the end.

Tomlin said: "It's an exciting victory for us, a very necessary one. They won the battle of field position, their special teams were better than ours, but in spite of all those things I thought the guys continued to fight.

"The turnovers levelled the playing field in the second half. That was the catalyst for us to go ahead and secure victory. I like the way the guys collectively smiled in the face of adversity.

"We'll be thankful for this win. That's a really good football team we played and were able to beat today. Hopefully there's some growth associated with conquering challenges like that, and we are going to need that as we go on the road next week."

The Steelers tackle the AFC West-leading Kansas City Chiefs on December 26, while the Titans are back in action against the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night.

Lions chew up Cardinals

Jared Goff threw three touchdown passes and kept the Arizona Cardinals waiting to nail down a playoff place as the Detroit Lions sprang a huge shock with their 30-12 win.

With just one win, Detroit headed into the game against the Cardinals, who were 10-3 for the season, as heavy underdogs, despite Arizona losing last week to the Los Angeles Rams.

Goff found Amon-Ra St Brown and Josh Reynolds for touchdowns in the first half as the Lions surge to a 17-0 lead at halfway – at that point their biggest advantage at any stage of any game all season and the Cardinals' biggest half-time deficit for three years.

The lead was even wider come the end of the game, with Goff finding Jason Cabinda for another touchdown, meaning Arizona's once-firm grip on first place in the NFC West is now far from that, as the Rams (9-4) lurk.

The NFL said the result marked only the third time since 1970 that a team with the worst record in the NFL had beaten a team with the best or joint-best record, taking into account only games when the sides had already played at least eight times in the season.

It was also the third-largest win all-time by a team with nine-plus fewer wins than an opponent, per Stats Perform.

Cowboys almost there

The Dallas Cowboys moved to the brink of a first playoff appearance since 2018 thanks to a 21-6 win over the New York Giants, improving to 10-4 as they continue to lead the NFC East.

Behind the arm of Dak Prescott (28-of-37 for 217 yards and one touchdown), the Cowboys had just enough to avoid any undue worries, with the scoring all wrapped up by the end of the third quarter.

While Prescott was far from perfect, he was streets ahead of Giants starting QB Mike Glennon (13-of-24 for 99 yards) who was picked off three times by the Cowboys. Trevon Diggs had the third of those interceptions to reach 10 for the season. Glennon was eventually benched to allow Jake Fromm (6-of-12 for 82 yards) a chance to impress.

Prescott lost both of his starts against the Giants as a rookie in 2016 but has now gone 9-0 in subsequent starts against New York.

All-Pro edge rusher Watt forced a fumble by Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith deep in Seattle territory with just over four minutes to play, setting up Boswell's decisive 37-yard field goal just over a minute later. 

After the teams traded punts on their opening possessions in overtime, Watt ran down a scrambling Smith at Seattle's 13-yard line and stripped the ball from the quarterback for the 20th forced fumble of his career – the most of any NFL player since Watt entered the league in 2017. 

It was fitting that defence played a key role in the outcome after both teams struggled to move the ball at times throughout the game. 

Pittsburgh opened the scoring nearly five minutes into the second quarter with a Ben Roethlisberger (29-of-40 passing for 229 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions) touchdown pass to Najee Harris and took a 14-0 lead into half-time. 

Seattle – without injured star quarterback Russell Wilson – answered after the break with a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter and eventually tied the game 17-17 on a Jason Myers field goal with 12:59 remaining in the fourth. 

Boswell then hit from 53 yards with 1:29 remaining before Myers answered from 43 at the buzzer to send it to overtime – though not without controversy. 

The Steelers believed they had the game won when Seattle's DK Metcalf fumbled after a reception and Seahawks receiver Freddie Swain recovered, leaving the visitors scrambling to stop the clock for a field-goal try. 

Officials then did it for them, stopping play for a video review while Smith tried to race to the line and spike the ball. Replay confirmed the initial play was ruled correctly but the stoppage gave the Seahawks time to spike it and set up Myers' game-tying try. 

Watt's big play in overtime ultimately rendered that complaint moot. 

After starting the NFL season 11-0, the Steelers slumped to a third straight loss, beaten 27-17 by rivals the Bengals on Monday.

Pittsburgh were on an 11-match winning streak over Cincinnati, but fell to defeat to leave the AFC North up for grabs.

Steelers head coach Tomlin lamented his side's performance at Paul Brown Stadium as Pittsburgh became the first team in NFL history to lose multiple games in which they entered with 11-plus wins and their opponents had four or fewer.

"Just not good enough for us," he told a news conference.

"The performance speaks for itself. We turned the ball over at the early portions of the game, you can't do that, you can't do that versus anybody. We gave them the short field three times in the first half or so and so it was an uphill battle the rest of the way because of that.

"They were able to hide the ball a little bit because of those circumstances. I thought they had a good plan. You've got to tip your cap to them, particularly with some of the quarterback design runs, they were able to keep us off balance and minimise some of the things that we were able to do on possession downs so I want to give them credit, but largely we've got a lot of work to do.

"We're not a good football group right now and so we understand the consequences that come with that, we're working on a short week, we've got to be better than what we've been and that's just the reality of it."

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger struggled, completing 20 of 38 passes for 170 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Roethlisberger became the seventh quarterback in NFL history to reach 60,000 passing yards, but he was well below his best.

"It's not injury related. It just wasn't good enough, like all of us, me included. We've got to be better," Tomlin said about his QB.

Roethlisberger also said he needed to improve, telling reporters: "Their whole defense kept us off balance. I wasn't good enough."

Wilson celebrated his 100th NFL victory as the Seahawks (2-2) rallied past the 49ers (2-2) in San Francisco on Sunday.

The Super Bowl champion finished 16-of-23 passing for two touchdowns, while he rushed for another TD on four carries.

Wilson joined Hall of Famer Peyton Manning as the second quarterback in NFL history to win 100 games in their first 10 seasons.

The 49ers – with Jimmy Garoppolo starting under center – took an early 7-0 lead but that was as good as it got for San Francisco on home soil.

Wilson's 12-yard pass to DK Metcalf ensured the scores were tied at half-time before the former dominated in the third period – the eight-time Pro Bowler's 16-yard run putting the Seahawks 14-7 ahead and Freddie Swain then caught a throw to stretch the lead to 14 points.

Trey Lance – who completed nine of his 18 passes for 157 yards and two TDs – replaced Garoppolo (calf) in the second half and the rookie QB kept the 49ers in the contest with a monster 76-yard TD pass to Deebo Samuel during the closing stages of the third quarter.

After an Alex Collins touchdown gave the Seahawks a 28-13 lead early in the final period, Lance combined with Samuel again at the death, but it was too little, too late.

Cardinals stay unbeaten behind Murray

Kyler Murray inspired the high-flying Arizona Cardinals to a 37-20 win at the previously undefeated Los Angeles Rams.

Murray passed for 268 yards and two touchdowns, while running for 39 more yards as the red-hot Cardinals improved to 4-0 this season.

Meanwhile, Aaron Rodgers and Randall Cobb guided the Green Bay Packers to a third consecutive win – a 27-17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Rodgers and Cobb connected for two touchdowns and ran for another score at home to the Steelers.

Packers superstar Rodgers threw his 420th career TD pass – tying Dan Marino for sixth all-time.

Under-fire Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger threw his 400th career touchdown pass – the eighth player to do so.