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- Mar 19, 2019
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James Conner rushed for 145 yards and a touchdown and JuJu Smith-Schuster added 103 yards receiving with a score as the Pittsburgh Steelers earned a 27-14 win over the Miami Dolphins on Monday night.
Conner did leave the game in the closing minutes with an apparent shoulder injury sustained on his final carry of the night.
The Steelers spotted the Dolphins are early 14-0 lead as a Mason Rudolph interception and Pittsburgh turnover on downs helped Miami jump out to an early lead. A Xavien Howard interception of Rudolph set up a 5-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick to Albert Wilson to give the Dolphins a 7-0 advantage. Allen Hurns then scored on a 12-yard reception from Fitzpatrick as the Dolphins took a two touchdown lead late in the first quarter.
But from that point forward, the game was all Steelers.
Fitzpatrick lost a fumble on a sack from T.J. Watt and was twice intercepted by former Dolphins safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Mark Walton also lost a fumble as a part of four Miami turnovers on the night. Two of Pittsburgh’s three touchdowns came directly off of Fitzpatrick interceptions.
Fitzpatrick would complete 21 of 34 passes for 190 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
After a 42-yard Chris Boswell field goal got the Steelers on the board, Rudolph connected with Diontae Johnson for a 45-yard touchdown right before halftime to close the gap to 14-10 at the break.
Rudolph finished with 251 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.
Fitzpatrick’s second interception of the night still pinned Pittsburgh back on their own 3-yard line and worked like a punt for Miami. But the poor field position didn’t deter the Steelers as they would march 97 yards on the ensuing drive with a 26-yard pass from Rudolph to Smith-Schuster gave Pittsburgh the lead, 17-14.
It was the first time this season Smith-Schuster cracked the 100-yard receiving barrier for Pittsburgh.
After a failed fourth-and-1 try at the end of the third quarter, the Steelers would strike again with a 9-yard touchdown run from Conner extended the lead to 24-14.
Conner would exit the game with just over two minutes left to play. Miami cornerback Xavien Howard (knee), Steelers guard Ramon Foster (concussion) and running back Benny Snell (knee) also left the game and did not return. Head coach Mike Tomlin said after the game that Conner is getting his AC joint evaluated.
Boswell would later add a 41-yard field goal to push the margin to 27-14.