NFL Week 9 Game Recap: Pittsburgh Steelers 29, Chicago Bears 27

The Pittsburgh Steelers survived a wild finish to improve to 5-3 on the season while the Chicago Bears fell to 3-6.

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Justin Fields and the Bears almost won the game late with a go-ahead touchdown just after the two-minute warning. Unfortunately for Chicago, Ben Roethlisberger led the Steelers down the field in 1:20 seconds to take a 29-27 lead before Bears kicker Cairo Santos missed a 65-yard game-winning field goal.

The Steelers host the Detroit Lions next week while the Bears are on bye. 

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Pittsburgh Steelers

Quarterback

Roethlisberger came alive in the second half after a slow start. His yards per attempt rose from an abysmal 4.8 in the first half to 8.3 in the second half.

Running Back

Najee Harris took 22 of the Steeler's 24 handoffs to running backs and while he only managed 2.8 yards per rush, he finished with 2.4 yards after contact per rush. 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

Tight end Pat Freiermuth caught two touchdown passes and finished with five catches for 43 yards on six targets. Diontae Johnson was the most targeted Steelers receiver (seven targets), and he hauled in five for 56 yards — 33 of which came after the catch. No receiver or tight end finished with more than 2.0 yards per route run. 

Offensive Line

Dan Moore allowed three pressures and a sack, but the rest of the offensive line combined to only give up two pressures and a sack. Trai Turner allowed the other sack. 

Defensive Line

Cameron Heyward continued his march toward an improbable Defensive Player of the Year award with a six-pressure, four-hurry and two-quarterback-hit performance. His partner on the defensive line — T.J. Watt — finished with three enormous sacks. 

Linebacker

Devin Bush almost ended the game early, as he almost intercepted a pass late in the fourth quarter. He was targeted quite a bit, however, allowing five catches on six targets while giving up 63 yards and two first downs.  

Secondary

Five Steelers were targeted at least three times — Joe Haden and Arthur Maulet were each targeted four times. Haden only allowed one catch, but it was for 50 yards while Maulet allowed three receptions for 64 total yards. 

Chicago Bears

Quarterback

Fields was elite from a clean pocket, throwing for 10.3 yards per attempt with one touchdown and one interception. Even under pressure, he threw for 9.3 yards per attempt and rushed for 17 yards; however, he was sacked three times. 

Running Back

David Montgomery returned from injury to give the Bears 4.8 yards per rush with 31 of his 63 yards coming after contact. He finished with three runs of over 10 yards. 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

Cole Kmet had a big day, as he caught six of eight targets for 87 yards — five of which went for first downs while turned into a touchdown. He finished with 3.11 yards per route run. The much-maligned Allen Robinson II caught four passes on six targets for 68 yards and 2.52 yards per route run. 

Offensive Line

The Bears offensive line wasn't at fault for any of Fields' sacks, but guard Cody Whitehair did allow three pressures — the only player who allowed multiple pressures.

Defensive Line

Robert Quinn led the defensive line with three pressures and a sack. He was the only defensive linemen with multiple pressures, but Bilal Nichols and Cassius Marsh each picked up a sack. 

Linebacker

Roquan Smith recorded a pressure and a sack while also posting three defensive stops against the run. Danny Trevathan made a tackle once every three snaps he played against the run, finishing with five tackles on just 15 run defense snaps.

Secondary

Nickelback Duke Shelley was targeted eight times but only gave up 27 total yards on those targets. Of the six catches given up, only one went for a first down. Cornerback Kindle Vildor continued to give up completions at a high rate, allowing four catches on only five targets for 62 yards and a touchdown.