By Harvey Hoffman
The Eagles season is melting away — they’re 3-6-1 and have a great chance to miss the playoffs, even in the terrible NFC East, which they still lead!
But pro football is alive and well across the state.
In fact, it is still perfect.
The Pittsburgh Steelers went on the road and took a 27-3 victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars to extend their record to 10-0.
Though the Jaguars struck first and held a 3-0 lead through one quarter, Pittsburgh came alive for a 17-3 halftime lead it rode out.
The Steelers have a short turnaround before playing the Baltimore Ravens (6-4) on Thanksgiving night.
Defense continue to be a calling card for the Steelers. The Jaguars’ opening-possession field goal is the fewest points they’ve scored all season, coming in under the 14 against the Houston Texans.
Pittsburgh put pressure on rookie quarterback Jake Luton, who was making his third start against the league’s leader in team sacks. Luton threw four interceptions — two to Minkah Fitzpatrick and two for Terrell Edmunds — and fumbled once. He completed 16 of 37 attempts for 151 yards and was sacked twice.
With that the Steelers extended their consecutive regular-season sack streak to 67, the longest active streak in the NFL and the longest in franchise history.
It’s the second-longest in NFL history, trailing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 69-game streak from 1999 to 2003, according to Steelers communications manager Michael Bertsch.
James Robinson rushed for 73 yards on 17 carries. The Jaguars mustered only 206 yards of offense and had 109 penalty yards.
Ben Roethlisberger completed 32 of 46 passes for 267 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Diontae Johnson caught 12 passes for 111 yards to lead all receivers. Rookie Chase Claypool had four catches for 59 yards and a score. Eric Ebron had four catches for 36 yards and the final score of the game midway through the fourth quarter.
Benny Snell Jr. got a 1-yard TD late in the second quarter after an incredible setup by Johnson the play prior.
