It's finally over! The Pittsburgh Steelers have gone literal years without scoring more than seven points in the first quarter of a football game. That despicable streak finally came to an end in a Week 3 30-27 win against the Cincinnati Bengals.
With just 52 seconds to spare in the first quarter, Aaron Rodgers hit wide receiver Ben Skowronek for a 23-yard touchdown to cap off an 11-play, 86-yard drive. This came after the Steelers converted a score on their opening drive, when Rodgers connected with Roman Wilson for a 38-yard touchdown down the left sideline just 1:50 into the game.
And with the second score just before the end of the first quarter, the Steelers ended a league-long 69-game streak without scoring more than 7 points in the opening quarter. If you include both the regular season and the playoffs, it's a 72-game streak that came to a screeching halt.
Before this, the last time the Steelers scored more than seven points in the first quarter was all the way back in Week 1 of the 2022 season. Ironically, this also came against the Bengals in a 23-20 overtime win, when they scored 10 in the first quarter.
It's been 1,477 days since the Steelers last scored more than seven points in the first quarter. Thankfully, we can cross this disgusting milestone off the to-do list.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' offense showed more signs of life than it has in years
Perhaps an even bigger takeaway than ending the first-quarter scoring drought was how explosive the Steelers' offense looked against the Bengals in Week 3. After a pathetic offensive showing that included three points in Week 2 against the New England Patriots, the Steelers were the exact opposite this week.
In the first half, Rodgers connected with his receivers for explosive plays down the field. Though he was just 12 of 21 passing in the first half, Rodgers put up an impressive 190 passing yards in the first two quarters of play. He could have had an even bigger first half, had it not been for a costly drop from Wilson that resulted in an interception and seven points the other way for the Bengals before halftime.
By the end of the game, the Steelers finished with 411 total yards of offense, while Rodgers put up one of the biggest performances of his Steelers career—earning 292 passing yards and three touchdowns.
The Steelers' defense was a letdown this week against an elite offense, but every fan should be encouraged by what Mike McCarthy's offense looked like after a remarkably slow start to the season.
Now that this pitiful 69-game streak has ended, there's hope that the Steelers could begin other games this season with an explosive offense.
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