It wasn’t all that long ago that the Pittsburgh Steelers and Las Vegas Raiders went head-to-head. Midway through the 2022 season, Pittsburgh finally found its grove and finished the last leg with a 7-2 record to pull just above .500 on the year.
When the Raiders sailed into Acrisure last Christmas Eve, the Steelers did not look sharp — a game of all field goals for the Black & Gold until its waning moments. In the battle’s last stand, Pittsburgh came out throwing. Kenny Pickett went 9-of-10 and, with 46 seconds to spare, zipped a pass to George Pickens over the middle of the end zone for a 14-yard score. The game-winning drive, the only time Pittsburgh had a lead, took 2:09 and covered 76 yards.
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Pickett to Pickens to give the @steelers the lead with less than a minute left!
📺: #LVvsPIT on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on NFL+ pic.twitter.com/VCKxO9Jfbs— NFL (@NFL) December 25, 2022
The defense sealed the deal when the Steelers picked off Derek Carr for the third time that night.
The Week 3 2023 matchup of the 1-1s, this time in enemy territory, could play out much as it did in December. Pickett looked scattered as if the moment was too big for him, and then suddenly, the light came on.
Which version of the Steelers will the Raiders get? The 2022 version that stumbled into a late win or an offense that finally finds its identity and proves to be the improved unit we all expected?
