2020 Steelers Season Recall: Washington Football Team ends Pittsburgh’s unbeaten streak at 11-0
Steel City Underground presents our 2020 Steelers Recall: a look back at Pittsburgh Steelers games and storylines from last season.
What a raw deal this game ended up being.
The 11-0 Steelers hosted the Washington Football Team following five days of rest following a brutal, heavily delayed (by ten days) matchup with their division rival the Baltimore Ravens.
Those five days of rest didn’t help heal any players who were injured or bring back those who were on the COVID-19 list either.
Instead, the Steelers would play without C Maurkice Pouncey for a second-straight game, while also losing LB Bud Dupree for the entire season against Baltimore. CB Steven Nelson was also inactive for this contest. K Chris Boswell would also sit out.
The Steelers offense started out fine, with Ben Roethlisberger throwing two touchdown passes in the second quarter: a short lob to Diontae Johnson and a 50-yard connection with James Washington.
The Steelers should’ve entered halftime with a 14-0 lead, but instead saw the referees butcher their administrative duties with 24 seconds remaining.
Washington QB Alex Smith would hold onto a football with a running clock and his team out of timeouts – yet somehow, the Football Team was permitted to attempt a 49-yard field goal attempt that saw Dustin Hopkins convert.
The 14-3 score stood entering the third quarter, where Washington at nearly 7 minutes of playing time over 14 plays, which finished in a touchdown and closing the Steelers lead to 14-10.
Pittsburgh answered with a field goal, their final points of the game, as the Football team scored three times in the fourth quarter to end the Steelers unbeaten streak: the final score, Washington 23, Pittsburgh 17.
