Steelers Offense Shines in Preseason Win Over Buccaneers

Kenny Pickett and George Pickens set the tone for a Pittsburgh Steelers win in the preseason opener.

PITTSBURGH -- The first drive of the Pittsburgh Steelers' preseason was a precursor for the rest of the game. After Kenny Pickett and George Pickens connected for a touchdown to cap their sharp opening drive, their team rolled to a 27-17 win in the preseason opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

The Buccaneers won the toss and took the ball to open the game. Former Cleveland Brown Baker Mayfield started under center for Tampa Bay, handing it off three straight times to Keyshawn Vaughn for nine total yards before Buccaneers' drive was undone by a third down stop from Kwon Alexander and false start penalty on fourth and one

On his first and only drive of the game, Pickett was as sharp as can be, completing six of seven passes for 70 yards. The 83-yard drive ended with an explosive play - Pickett to Pickens for a 33-yard catch and run touchdown.  

George Pickens said his goal this season is to be able to catch a ball over the middle and take it to the house... we just saw that

— Noah Strackbein (@NoahStrackbein) August 11, 2023

Down 7-0, Tampa Bay was able to find some holes in the Steelers defense on their second drive but two untimely penalties - an illegal formation on Trey Palmer and a false start on Vaughn - stalled the drive. 

Mitch Trubisky took over on the second Steelers drive, which ended quickly in a three-and-out after two short runs from Anthony McFarland and a misfire from Trubisky on third and long intended for Gunner Olszewski. 

Alexander continued to dominate when the Steelers' defense on the field. He laid a devastating hit on Chase Edmunds but was flagged for an unnecessary roughness call on second down. That helped keep their drive alive and move it into the redzone. Mayfield capped the possession with a beautiful connection with Trey Palmer, who tapped his toes in the back of the endzone over a touchdown over James Pierre. 

The Steelers immediately gave the ball back when Trubisky's deep shot bounced off Cody White's hands and into the grasp of Zyon McCollum. But the defense regained possession quickly behind tackles for loss from Keeanu Benton and Isaiahh Loudermilk, which forced a turnover on downs. 

The second offense had struggled to get their feet underneath them until Calvin Austin took a jet sweep 17 yards for a first down - his first touch in an NFL game. Trubisky then connected with Heyward for a 10-yard reception to set up McFarland's 14-yard touchdown with 8:25 left in the first half. 

The Steelers, holding a 14-0 lead, welcomed a new opposing quarterback in Kyle Trask. More penalties nullified a promising drive for Tampa Bay, when Edumnds' 20-yard gain was offset by a hold. But the real mistake came one play later, when Trenton Thompson undercut a Trask pass for an interception. 

Mason Rudolph stepped in to take his first snaps of the night and lef the Steelers on an ugly eight-play drive. He short-armed what could have been a first-down throw to a wide-open Austin, recovered a fumbled snap and took a nine-yard sack on third down.

The Steelers forced a quick three-and-out and took the ball back with 1:10 left in the half. Rudolph responded to a rocky start with sharp execution as the clock wound down. He completed a pair of passes to Heyward and Olszewksi for 38 total yards, then scrambled for 15 yards to get into field goal range. B.T. Potter closed the half with a 30-yard field goal to put the Steelers up 17-7. 

The Steelers' first drive of the second half opened with promise, as Austin drew a 38-yard pass interference penalty. But the drive ultimately stalled after a pair of incompletions and Potter knocked through a second-consecutive field goal to put Pittsburgh up 20-7 with 12:42 left in the third quarter. 

The Tampa Bay offense left the field without points for a fourth straight time and the Steelers made them pay immediately. On the third play of the Steelers' next drive, Rudolph hit Austin for a 67-yard touchdown down the sideline and the visitors led 27-7 at the 8:38 mark of the third quarter. 

A 23-yard reception from Kaylon Geiger was all the Buccaneers could muster on their next possession before Nick Herbig shut down the drive with his second sack of the night. 

The Steelers introduced a fourth quarterback in Tanner Morgan, who's first drive in the NFL ended in a three-and-out. The Buccaneers also put a new quarterback and John Wolford completed his first pass for 17 yards to Taye Barber, but the possession still ended in a punt.

Morgan's NFL debut continued to get off to a rocky start, as he fumbled the first snap of his second drive. It appeared he had lost it to the Buccaneers, but an official review kept the ball with Pittsburgh on their own nine yard line. But it was a short-lived, as Morgan pitched an interception straight into the arms of Rod Williams at the 20 yard line. 

Tampa Bay had another big play - a 12-yard touchdown run from Sean Tucker - erased by a penalty and Breiden Fohoko deflected a third-down pass from Wolford to set up a field goal attempt. Rodrigo Blankenship knocked through the 35-yarder to make it 27-10 with 13:38 to go in the game. 

Another Morgan-led drive for the Steelers ended in a three-and-out but the defense got the ball back with a turnover on downs. Morgan and company began to move the ball with some success the next time around. Hakeem Butler got his name in the box score with a 17-yard reception, but the drive ended in another punt from Braeden Mann. 

Wolford proceeded to lead the Buccaneers on a long march up into the redzone. He completed seven of nine passes for 86 yards, to bring Tampa Bay up inside the five yard line and his final pass went to Payne Durham for a touchdown to make it 27-17 with 2:02 to play. 

The Steelers gained zero yards on three plays with their next drive and the Buccaneers used their final three timeouts to get one last look at their punt return unit and offense. Instead, the Steelers recovered a fumble and Morgan kneeled out the remainder of the clock to put a bow on the preseason-opening win.  

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