After falling behind in a mistake-filled first half, the Eagles came back in the fourth quarter on Sunday in Pittsburgh and took a 14-13 lead over the Steelers. But that wasn’t enough.
The Eagles took that lead with 6:33 remaining in the game, only to allow Ben Roethlisberger to march Pittsburgh down the field on a 14-play, 64-yard drive that took all the remaining time off the clock and ended with a Shaun Suisham 34-yard field goal as time expired. The Steelers won 16-14.
Michael Vick was cautious and efficient passing, completing 20 of 30 passes for 175 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions. But Vick also fumbled three times, losing two of them and costing the Eagles a couple of good scoring opportunities in the first quarter.
Roethlisberger was similarly cautious and efficient for the Steelers, and the best news for Pittsburgh’s offense was that running back Rashard Mendenhall, playing for the first time since suffering a torn ACL at the end of last season, looked fast and explosive. Mendenhall ran 14 times for 81 yards and a touchdown, and also added two catches for 20 yards.
The loss drops the Eagles to 3-2 and into a tie with the Giants in the NFC East. The Steelers improve to 2-2, where they’re still behind the Ravens and Bengals in the AFC North. But Pittsburgh is the top team in Pennsylvania.