Chapter 600: 599 Destroy the Steel Curtain Chapter 600: 599 Destroy the Steel Curtain Cornerback Fowler exploded with amazing energy like a Super Saiyan, but this also meant severe energy consumption.
Coupled with Fowler’s limited personal ability ceiling, if this continued, Fowler would definitely not be able to keep up with Brown’s pace.
The Kansas City Chiefs Defense naturally couldn’t put all the pressure on Fowler; they needed to relieve some of his pressure from other areas—
Unlike in the first half, the pressure from Kansas City Chiefs on the defensive front visibly increased, refusing to allow Roethlisberger to complete passes easily.
Roethlisberger was not afraid of blitzes, and often seized the opponents’ gaps during their blitzes to sneak attacks into the backfield; but that was relative.
Roethlisberger’s size and footwork could either be an advantage or a disadvantage, and his bulky figure wasn’t afraid of collisions, yet it also meant he was not very agile.
Beyond tackles, effective collisions and disrupting the passing vision could also make Roethlisberger’s passes unstable.
Once Roethlisberger’s passing stability was disrupted, Brown’s threat would also decrease, winning more space for Fowler’s man-to-man coverage.
Then, this scene occurred—
“Defensive End Jones successfully collided with Roethlisberger, but couldn’t finish the sack.
Roethlisberger’s size sustained his body, and he didn’t fall down immediately, no sack, no sack.”
“Roethlisberger completes the pass!”
Justin Houston appeared in an open gap to complete the interception, unbelievable!”
“Roethlisberger’s passing vision was disrupted, and the control over the passing arc also clearly went awry, making it uncertain whether the pass was intended for Washington or Brown, but clearly, Fowler again did excellent work in man-to-man coverage, not letting Brown get loose, and ultimately it was Houston who utilized his abundant game experience to take the gap and easily intercept.”
“Houston is on the counterattack!”
“Wow, fortunately, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive line’s secondary reaction was timely, tripping up Houston, preventing any further counterattack from him.”
“Even so, this was the second turnover of the game, still originating from Kansas City Chiefs, following up another turnover after causing a fumble.”
“The defending champions seized the opportunity to push forward decisively, completely gaining the upper hand…”
“Wait, a yellow flag has appeared on the field!”
“The penalized player is… Antonio Brown.”
“Brown was penalized for holding, but Brown clearly disagreed with the call, and he and Fowler engaged in a verbal confrontation, bad, things are somewhat getting out of control.”
“This is very bad for the Pittsburgh Steelers now.”
The scene was chaotic.
Tomlin watched this unfold, slightly stunned, his focus dissipating, and he suddenly understood what that unease was all about—
The momentum had shifted.
His heart sank heavily.
Considering Bell’s holdout and strike, tactically, Tomlin thought the impact was limited, as rookie running back Conner should be able to rapidly grow through some matches and baptism, and he believed there was no need to worry.
But from a strategic perspective, influences permeated every aspect.
First was Tomlin himself, whether he was trying to prove that Conner could do it or trying to break the situation by using a passing offense, essentially, it meant that Tomlin was sending a message to Bell —
I don’t care if you’re on strike.
This also meant that Bell ultimately still had an impact on Tomlin, making it impossible for him to remain objective while devising tactics and directing the game.
Second were the players themselves, who could feel Tomlin holding his breath; the invisible pressure was right there; when the Kansas City Chiefs resisted the Pittsburgh Steelers’ counterattacks with even more excellent performances, it affected their spirits.
Layers of pressure made them anxious, uneasy, shaken, and even self-doubting:
Could it be, without Bell, the competitiveness of the Pittsburgh Steelers really is compromised?
Their emotions, unable to settle down.
Last season, in the sixth week of the regular games, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Kansas City Chiefs battled until the last moment, with the Steelers always in control, believing that the Chiefs’ victory was merely out of luck; they had faith and fighting spirit up until the last second.
And now, with only a five-point difference, the final quarter had just begun, and there was a noticeable shake in the Pittsburgh Steelers, not just in Tomlin; that sense of unrest was gradually spreading.
Tomlin’s intuition was right —
He refused to give up, to say nothing of the fact that the game wasn’t over yet, and the outcome still hung in balance; even if not for the outcome of this game, thinking about the future games in the season, they needed to grit their teeth and rally, or else it wouldn’t just be about the outcome of one game.
Tomlin quickly pulled himself together.
The downturn was irreversible.
On that side, the Kansas City Chiefs found their belief again through continuous strong collisions.
After reopening the game with a ground attack, Mahomes also regained his composure and confidence, his passing choices and defensive reads recovering their potency and again shifting the momentum, this young player visibly growing strong through the ordeal of the game.
On this side, the Pittsburgh Steelers were desperately trying to turn the tide in a tough situation.
However, the more impatient and anxious they became, the more desperate and nervous they got, disrupting order and structure; combined with declining physical strength, more and more vulnerabilities were exposed and mistakes began to surface, gradually losing control of the game.
It wasn’t just the Defensive group, the Offensive group felt it too.
The seemingly positive bubble of the preseason was burst, fully exposing weaknesses, appearing ready for the new season, but actually unable to hide their insecurity and unrest —
At this point, it was clear to anyone watching, Bell’s absence ultimately still stirred ripples within the Pittsburgh Steelers’ team.
If their opening game opponents were not the Kansas City Chiefs, the Pittsburgh Steelers might not have been in such a bad state; but they encountered the vigorous and confident Kansas City Chiefs, pushing the Steelers to the edge.
It was absolutely certain that the feud between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Pittsburgh Steelers would continue to unfold.
The suspense of the game in the fourth quarter soon vanished, evaporating like bubbles, the intensity and tension of the first three quarters fizzling out disappointingly.
For the Kansas City Chiefs, Mahomes connected with Hill for a passing touchdown, and Hunter also scored a rushing touchdown.
The scoring momentum was not diminished, with Mahomes personally achieving three passing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown, performing outstandingly in his first career start as quarterback.
For the Pittsburgh Steelers, who had a chance to close the score gap, ended up committing a face mask foul inside the Red Zone, missing the touchdown opportunity, and after failing a critical three-yard play in fourth down, they wasted their last chance to score, ending the fourth quarter inexplicably without scoring any points.
The 2018 season opener, after enduring blood-tingling suspense for three quarters, the fourth quarter collapsed completely in a disappointing end, an outcome that nobody foresaw from the beginning or during the process, finishing the match disappointingly.
The defending champions Kansas City Chiefs withstood a severe test, repelling the Pittsburgh Steelers to a victorious start.