All's Well That Ends Well as Steelers Surge Late to Win in Tampa

Well, as the old saying goes, all's well that ends well. Read more: All's Well That Ends Well as Steelers Surge Late to Win in Tampa

With the previous coaching regime, fans had come to brace themselves for letdown, "Tomlin Specials": losses to losing teams, following big wins against quality opponents.

The phenomenon aggravated the fan base for almost 15 years before Mike Tomlin shocked the world by resigning out of nowhere last January. The question was: Would heretofore routine, upset losses become a thing of the past with Coach Tomlin's departure -- or would they continue to plague the Steelers, a sign that the problem was more deep-seated than previously believed?

From "Tomlin Specials" to "Mike Misadventures"?

For three quarters Sunday, Steelers fans wondered if they needed to change the name of these losses from "Tomlin Specials" to "Mike Misadventures" -- as the unfortunate trend looked as though it was sure to continue from one Mike to the next.

To start with against the 1-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pittsburgh appeared lethargic, out-of-sync, and unprepared. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers looked as if he would rather be anywhere else than on the field at Raymond James Stadium (hallowed ground for Steeler Nation, as the site of Super Bowl XLIII, and of the Steelers' XLIII-winning drive, the most iconic in all of Super Bowl history).

Steelers rally past the Buccaneers in overtime

Yet, a funny thing happened on the way to an apocalyptic post-game discussion forum. Virtually out of nowhere, the Steelers, down 16-3, came alive in the final quarter of regulation, scoring 16 unanswered en route to a 26-19 victory (the season's first on the road) in overtime. QB Rodgers threw for multiple TDs for the fourth straight game; receiver DK Metcalf caught 11 of Rodgers' passes for almost 100 yards; rookie receiver Germie Bernard nabbed the game-winning score; and, in crunch time, the defense twice intercepted Bucs rookie QB Jalon Daniels (who looked as good as the Steelers did bad until everybody traded places).

After the game, Rodgers reflected on the victory, calling it "a trajectory win." "These are the most important moments for us as a team to grow," the quarterback, purportedly in his final NFL season, said.

Clock management woes for McCarthy

As satisfying as the comeback was, though, it didn't need to be as dramatic. A win's a win, indeed, but, even in the end, this was a game that the Steelers won more or less in spite of Coach McCarthy, who by no means logged his best day at the office. Following the second of the defense's interceptions (by former Buc Jamel Dean, no less), the Steelers were looking at 1st-and-Goal with 1:38 left in regulation. Almost everybody under the sun would've been thinking -- should've been thinking -- Run the ball three straight times. Make the Bucs use all of their timeouts, and run the clock down as much as possible. Even if the Steelers had only managed a field goal in that circumstance, they would have been kicking the ball back to Tampa with only about 30 or 40 seconds for them to work with. Instead, McCarthy called only one run play and two pass plays, both incomplete, and the Steelers, who did manage only to score a field goal, gave the ball back to the Buccaneers with twice as much time on the clock as should've been the case, and without making them burn all of their timeouts.

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No less bad: After the Bucs had used all of their timeouts in the final drive of regulation and were scrambling to line up in time for a lengthy field goal attempt, McCarthy bailed them out by burning one of the Steelers' remaining timeouts.

"Tomlin Specials" may be a thing of the past, but clock management woes may not be. . . .

A first road win and a share of first place

To add literal insult to injury, McCarthy had to go to the team's blue tent -- yes, that blue tent -- after he, somehow, injured himself during the game. The only thing that "Big Mike" is apt to remember fondly about this particular Florida trip is that it begat his first road win as Steelers head coach, getting that proverbial monkey off his back. Which he, and the 2026 Steelers, did -- boosting their record for the season to 4-2 and a share of a three-way tie for first place in the AFC North.

. . . and on that note: The Steelers need to keep up the pace in what, once again, looks as though it will be the NFL's toughest, tightest division, from top to bottom. The only team that isn't 4-2 -- 3-2 Cincinnati -- was merely on its bye this week. As usual, evidently, the North will be a meat grinder, and if Pittsburgh -- last year's victor in the division -- is to repeat as champ, the team may need to win the season's usual war of attrition, managing to stay healthier than everyone else.

Time will soon tell.

Next on the Steelers' schedule: a trip to Europe (maybe . . . ) to play the New Orleans Saints in the NFL's first-ever game in Paris (maybe . . . ). Kickoff is 9:30 a.m. ET, Sunday the 25th (maybe . . . ).