It doesn't get any more exciting than this for a must-have regular-season game in December. The Pittsburgh Steelers were underdogs against the Detroit Lions in Week 16, and with the Lions desperate for a win to keep their playoff hopes alive, Mike Tomlin's team delivered the ultimate early Christmas present to Steelers fans.
Despite being down 10-3 with under two minutes remaining in the first half, the Steelers poured it on in the second half and eventually held a 29-17 lead late in the game.
But that's when things got wild.
After allowing a 10-play 68-yard touchdown drive to the Lions with just 4:11 remaining in the game, the Steelers had a chance to put the game out of reach with a 37-yard field goal from Chris Boswell (which is typically automatic from him). However, Boswell's miss gave Detroit new life.
With just 2:05 remaining, the Lions marched down the field on a 10-play, 64-yard drive. But the game ended with the most insane play imaginable.
Quarterback Jared Goff threw a short pass to the left side of the field to Amon-Ra St. Brown, who was able to lateral the ball back to Goff before the whistle blew for forward progress. Goff caught the lateral and scored a touchdown. This would have been a walk-off game-winning score... if not for an offensive pass interference call nullifying the score.
St. Brown got too aggressive at the top of his route and was called for offensive pass interference. And so although Goff scored on the play, the penaltiy wiped out the touchdown and ended the game on the spot.
The Steelers held on to win 29-24... and the Lions' home crowd erupted in a fit of rage.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans just witnessed the most dramatic win at the perfect time
With the chaotic last-second win over the Lions, the Steelers advance to 9-6 on the season and remain in pole position to lock down the AFC North. This game was the perfect gift to fans and the best possible time.
While many predicted that Pittsburgh would have the wind taken from their sails this week against a desperate Lions team, the Steelers were the better team in this contest. Coach Tomlin's team won the total yardage battle (481-361), outpaced the Lions in yards per play (6.9 to 5.2), while blowing Detroit out of the water in rushing yards 230 to 15), per ESPN stats.
It was a tale of two halves for the Steelers, who showcased tremendous defense but had difficulty moving the football in the first two quarters. In the second half, however, Pittsburgh let its foot off the gas on defense, while it was the offense that stepped up to the plate with 19 second-half points.
This game will go down as one for the ages. The Pittsburgh Steelers showed they have the grit to finish huge road games against quality opponents, despite losing the turnover battle. This is what every fan wanted to see... and it came jam-packed with drama.