Season-shaping plays: Long TD dooms Steelers in loss to Saints

[WhoDat!656]

Other than the home win against the Packers this was the only other bright spot in a dumpster fire Saints season.


This is the 12th in a series that looks at 17 plays that shaped the Pittsburgh Steelers' season -- one from every game.

No. 12: New Orleans Saints wide receiver catches Steelers cornerback standing Stills.

The setting: The Steelers had cut the Saints’ lead to 21-13 late in the third quarter on a short Bell touchdown run and were poised to get the ball back when New Orleans struck with the biggest play of the game.

The play: The Saints, facing a third-and-10 from the Steelers’ 31-yard line, lined up Kenny Stills in the slot and he ran an out and up. Quarterback Drew Brees received plenty of time from his offensive line and made one of his easier touchdown throws after cornerback Ike Taylor bit on the out cut. Stills had at least 10 yards on Taylor when he hauled in Brees' pass, and the second-year man had a clear path to the end zone. His touchdown re-established a double-digit lead for the Saints, and the Steelers never seriously threatened the rest of the way in a 35-32 loss that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score indicated.

What it meant for the bigger picture: Taylor played in his first game since breaking his forearm in late September, and the Stills’ touchdown raised red flags about the veteran cornerback’s ability to overcome a serious injury and still keep up with younger wide receivers. The Steelers, meanwhile, gave up their third long touchdown pass in as many games, and the loss to the Saints dropped them to 7-5. The Steelers had taken a playoff mentality into the Saints game. After that loss they knew they had no margin for error if they wanted to win the AFC North.

Season-shaping plays: Long TD dooms Pittsburgh Steelers in loss - ESPN