It showed early Sunday night against Philadelphia, as both turned the
ball over in the first
quarter.
But Roethlisberger and Parker responded well to their early miscues,
helping the Steelers
to a 27-13 victory here at Heinz Field over the Eagles.
Roethlisberger, seeing his most extensive playing time of the
preseason, threw an ill-
advised pass that was intercepted on Pittsburgh’s opening possession,
but recovered to
complete 13 of 25 passes for 247 yards in leading the Steelers to a
13-3 halftime lead.
Parker, meanwhile, lost a fumble at the Eagles' goal line on
Pittsburgh's third possession,
but rebounded by rolling up 71 total yards of offense – including an
18-yard touchdown
run – in his first extended playing time of this preseason.
“We overcame adversity tonight,” said Parker, who gained 31 yards on
10 carries with a
touchdown and also caught three passes for 40 yards.
“I got into the end zone and I fumbled down at the end zone. I
overcame adversity, but I’m
not really satisfied with how I played.”
With both teams playing their starters throughout most of the first
half, the Steelers held a
clear advantage, outgaining Philadelphia 297-89, with the defense
recording three sacks.
Despite having the ball with great field position throughout the
first half, the Eagles
managed only three points.
An interception on the Steelers’ opening possession gave Philadelphia
the ball at
Pittsburgh 49. After driving to the Steelers’ 23, back-to-back sacks
knocked the Eagles
out of field-goal range.
A 14-yard punt by rookie Daniel Sepulveda from his own end zone gave
Philadelphia the
ball at the Pittsburgh 20 on its second possession, but the Eagles
were forced to settle for
a 22-yard field goal by David Akers.
The Steelers drove from their own 26 to the Philadelphia 1 on their
next possession, but
Willie Parker fumbled on second-and-goal and the Eagles recovered to
end the threat.
A muffed punt by Willie Reid pinned the Steelers back at their own 3
to start their next
possession, and after a three-and-out by the Pittsburgh offense, the
Eagles took over at
the 44. Philadelphia, however, was again unable to generate any
points.
"I like the way we smiled in the face of adversity," said Steelers
head coach Mike Tomlin.
"Really, we created some of that adversity ourselves. But I liked the
way this team fights.
They stayed together in a lot of tough situations. … Thankfully, the
defense kept us in it."
That was it for Philadelphia quarterback Donovan McNabb, who finished
5-for 11 for 60
yards.
Working from their own 20, the Steelers finally broke through, going
80 yards in a drive
capped by Parker’s 18-yard touchdown run with 5:39 remaining in the
first half for a 7-3
lead.
The Steelers added three points on their next possession, getting a
33-yard screen pass
from Roethlisberger to Najeh Davenport with a personal-foul penalty
tacked on at the end
for a horse collar-tackle. It set up a 37-yard Jeff Reed field goal
with less than two minutes
left in the first half.
After forcing another three-and-out by the Eagles, the Steelers
tacked on another Reed
field goal, this one from 40 yards, with three seconds remaining in
the half. Roethlisberger
completed three passes on the drive, including a 25-yarder to
Davenport, to get the team
in scoring position.
The Eagles trimmed the lead to 13-6 with a field goal to open the
second half – the fourth
consecutive time this preseason an opponent has scored points on its
opening possession
of the third quarter.
But Charlie Batch, who replaced Roethlisberger to start the second
half, continued his
strong play, completing all three of his passes for 65 yards in a
79-yard drive that was
capped by a 1-yard TD run by Kevan Barlow. That score put Pittsburgh
ahead 20-6.
Rookie Kevin Kolb, Philadelphia’s second-round draft pick, tossed a
4-yard TD pass to
tight end Lee Vickers – who was in camp with the Steelers last season
as a defensive end –
with 4:14 remaining to cut Pittsburgh’s lead to 20-13.
After the Eagles forced the Steelers to punt, Kolb drove Philadelphia
to the Pittsburgh 28 at
the two-minute warning. But rookie cornerback William Gay stripped
tight end Zac Collie
of the ball after a 6-yard gain and cornerback Jovon Johnson
recovered, returning the ball
78 yards for a Pittsburgh touchdown.