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Steelers vs. Texans takeaways: Justin Field has solid debut despite Pittsburgh's 20-12 defeat

Justin Fields continued to show his potential during Friday night's preseason opener between the Steelers and Falcons. But three mistakes -- two fumbled center-quarterback exchanges and one arrant call by an official -- largely contributed to Fields being unable to lead the Steelers to any points in his three series of work. 

Conversely, his counterpart, C.J. Stroud, was able to hit pay dirt during his limited time on the field while setting the tone for Houston's 20-12 win over the Steelers. 

Stroud's touchdown pass was a 34-yard beauty thrown to Tank Dell on Houston's second drive. Houston stretched its lead to 14-0 after taking advantage of a short field that was the byproduct of a muffed punt by Pittsburgh's Quez Watkins. 

Trailing 17-0 at intermission, Steelers backup quarterback Kyle Allen led the Steelers on consecutive touchdown drives to start the second half. Those scores were sandwiched between a 43-yard field goal by Ka'imi Fairbairn. The Texans sealed the win when second-year defensive back Brandon Hill picked off Allen with 16 seconds left. 

Stroud went 2 of 4 for 41 yards in two series of work. Fields was 5 of 6 for 67 yards but the victim of two sacks that were the direct result of two bad snaps by Nate Herbig. 

Here are the five biggest takeaways from Friday's game. 

Fields continues to impress 

Fields' performance on Friday was a reflection of the work he's put in in Latrobe. While he didn't display his elite running prowess or his impressive deep ball, other aspects of Fields' game were on display. 

On the game's first play, Fields executed a perfectly-timed screen pass to Najee Harris that went 16 yards. His second pass attempt was an excellent ball to George Pickens on the near sideline for 15 yards. The drive stalled, however, when Fields wasn't able to handle a bad snap by Herbig. Pittsburgh's inability to run the ball didn't help, either. 

Another fumbled snap and a Danielle Hunter sack of Fields quickly ended Pittsburgh's second drive. Fields and Co. were then able to string together a 43-yard drive that included with a 10-yard completion to Pickens and a 20-yard dime to Van Jefferson. An incorrect call, however, after an the official ruled that Jefferson did not catch Fields' pass on second down in bounds (he did, but Mike Tomlin chose not to challenge) slowed Pittsburgh's momentum. Fields was then sacked on third down by Jerry Hughes and Mario Edwards Jr., thus forcing another punt. 

The score doesn't always tell the story, and that was the case for Fields on Friday night. Rest assured that a more cohesive offensive line (more on that in a second) would have resulted in some points during Fields' time on the field. 

No Aiyuk? No problem 

Unless you live under a rock, you know that the Steelers are reportedly trying to work out a trade with the 49ers that would bring talented wideout Brandon Aiyuk to Pittsburgh. But if Friday is any indication of how good the Steelers' receivers might be, Aiyuk may not be needed in Pittsburgh. 

Pickens continues to look like the Steelers' next great receiver. Jefferson's arrow continues to point north. Calvin Austin III made several big plays during the second half of Friday's game. Scotty Miller and Dez Fiitzpatrick showed their big-play ability by respectively pulling down grabs of 38 and 34 yards. Tight end Connor Heyward scored the second of Pittsburgh's two touchdowns on a short reception from Allen. 

One game (let alone a preseason one) does not make a season. But the Steelers' receivers showed themselves well on Friday night. 

O-line issues 

If the Steelers wanted to, they could have trotted out their starting five and been just fine. But in the spirit of the preseason, Pittsburgh decided to tinker with the unit while trying out several lineups that included both rookies and veterans. 

Rookie Troy Fautanu made several solid plays while getting the start at right tackle. He then received a "welcome to the NFL moment" on Friday night, courtesy of the veteran Hunter. Making matters worse was the news postgame that Fautanu suffered a knee injury on Friday and the extent of his injury is currently unknown. 

Center and fellow rookie Zach Frazier held his own after spelling Herbig. Mason McCormick, yet another rookie, also got some valuable reps. 

Clearly, Pittsburgh's shuffling of the offensive line created some leaks that Houston's talented front took advantage of. But, sans Herbig's control issues, Friday night was a largely positive night for Pittsburgh's bigs, especially in the second half. 

Texans defense looks the part 

Sure, the Steelers starting offense's inability to score was largely due to self-inflicted wounds. But Houston's defense was also a big reason why Fields and Co. were held to a goose egg. 

Houston's run defense came up big on Pittsburgh's first drive. The pass got home during each of the next two drives and was a big reason why the Steelers went 0-for-3 on third down with Fields on the field. The Texans' defense also didn't allow Fields to make any big plays with his legs. 

Late in the game, Houston's defense came up with two big stops to preserve the win. McTevin Agim's sack of Allen contributed to the unit's first stop. Hill, who went to college at Pitt, sealed the win when he plucked Allen's desperation heave out of the air deep in Houston territory. 

Stroud ready to roll 

It was only two drives, but Stroud and the Texans' offense looked sharp. Texans fans were surely happy to see the return of Dell, whose promising rookie season last year was cut short by an injury. 

Friday night was a successful debut for rookie tight end Cade Stover, who caught three passes that included a 16-yarder that set up Houston's second touchdown. 

And no, you're not the only one that picked up on Stover's number, which was worn by future Hall of Fame tight end Rob Gronkowski. 

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Live updates
 

Texans hang on to record 20-12 win 

Houston's defense came up big after Fairbairn's missed FG. McTevin Agim's sack of Allen contributed to a Steelers punt. 

Pittsburgh's defense responded with a forced punt of their own, giving its offense one last chance with 1:34 left. But second-year safety Brandon Hill picked off Allen's overthrown pass with 16 seconds left, icing the win. 

Texans 1-0 this preseason, while Pittsburgh falls to 0-1. Good game overall. Houston's offense looked sharp, while the Steelers will look to shore up some of their miscues, especially on the offensive line. 

 

Missed FG gives Steelers life 

Houston once again had a nice drive, but this time, they came up empty as Ka'imi Fairbairn missed a 42-yard FG attempt. Steelers trail 20-12 but have a chance to tie the game with 3:53 left. 

 

Miller, Edwards trim Pittsburgh's deficit to 20-12 

The Steelers have now scored on each of their two drives this half. Pittsburgh's second score was set up by Scotty Miller's 38-yard grab and Daijun Edwards' 24-yard run. Edwards, an undrafted rookie, finished the drive with a short TD run. 

 

Allen leads Steelers to first score 

Kyle Allen's six-yard TD pass to Connor Heyward capped off an impressive 10-play, 78-yard drive on Pittsburgh's first drive of the second half. The drive started with a 24-yard completion to Calvin Austin III an also included a 25-yarder to Austin and an 11-yard scramble by Allen. 

 

Texans punt on opening drive of 2nd half 

Several nice plays by Cam Akers got the Texans past midfield, but three straight incomplete passes from Tim Boyle led to a Texans punt. Nice breakup by Steelers backup cornerback Kalon Barnes during that sequence. 

 

Halftime recap 

Texans 17, Steelers 0 

Texans: Houston enjoyed strong play from both quarterbacks C.J. Stroud and Davis Mills. Both quarterbacks had success throwing to rookie TE Cade Stover, who caught three passes for 32 yards. Robert Woods also had a big half with 4 catches for 42 yards. 

Steelers: Fields played well, but two low snaps and a bad call prevented Pittsburgh from scoring on each of Fields' three drives. Speaking of fumbles, a fumbled snap by Quez Watkins set up Houston's second TD. 

Jonathan Ward, Van Jefferson and DeMarvin Leal were among the Steelers' better players in the first half. Ward had a 20-yard run, Jefferson had a 20-yard catch and Leal had a sack of Mills for an 11-yard loss. 

Key stat: Texans were 3-6 on third down, Steelers were 0-5. 

 

Texans capitalize on Steelers SPE fumble 

Houston parlayed a fumbled punt by Quez Watkins with a second TD to increase its lead to 14-0. Allen's completions of 16 yards to Cade Stover and 15 yards to Robert Woods set up Dare Ogunbowale's easy 4-yard TD run. 

One positive for the Steelers on that drive was DeMarvin Leal's sack of Mills. Leal has impressed so far during camp. 

 

Steelers come up empty (in red zone) on fourth drive 

Kyle Allen replaced Fields and moved the Steelers to the Texans' 2. But on fourth and goal, Allen overthrew Calvin Austin III, who was wide open in the back of the end zone. The drive's big plays were Jonathan Allen's 20-yard outside run and Allen's 34-yard completion to Dez Fitzpatrick off play-action. 

 

First quarter stats: 

Texans 7, Steelers 0 

  • Stroud: 2/4, 41 yards, TD
  • Fields: 5/6, 67 yards, 2 sacks
  • Pierce: 4 carries, 4 yards
  • Warren: 3 carries, 11 yards
  • Harris: 3 carries, 9 yards
  • Pickens: 2 catches, 25 yards 
  • Steelers 0-3 on third down 
  • Herbig: Two low snaps that led to fumbles 
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Steelers come up empty on third drive 

Pittsburgh drove to Houston's 36, but punted after a bad call wiped out a Fields completion to Van Jefferson on the far sideline. Fields was then sacked on third down. 

Despite the punt, that was the Steelers' best drive so far. Fields had a nifty completion to Jefferson in addition to a 10-yard completion to Pickens. Warren and Harris also had nice runs on the eight-play, 43-yard drive. 

For the Texans, Davis Mills is in for Stroud, who is done for the night. 

 

Texans strike first on Stroud TD pass to Tank Dell 

Houston's first-team offense scored on its second drive after Stroud hit Dell on a 34-yard TD strike on third down. Dell caught the pass in traffic before racing to pay dirt. 

 

Fumble dooms Steelers on second drive 

A second low snap by C Nate Herbig in as many drives short-circuits Steelers' second drive. The drive ended with Vikings DE Danielle Hunter slamming Fields to the ground. 

 

Here's a look at Fields' completion to Pickens on Pitt's first drive. 

 

Steelers already makings moves on O-line 

 

Texans also punt on their first after a three and out. Stroud overthrew TE Dalton Schultz on third down. There was clear DPI by DeShon Elliott but ball wasn't catchable. 

Stroud did connect with rookie and former Ohio State teammate Cade Stover for a seven-yard gain on second down. Like Pitt, Hou also not able to get anything going on the ground. 

 

Steelers offense drives past midfield but have to punt after Justin Fields fumbled a snap on first down. What followed was a short run by Warren and a check down from Fields to Pat Freiermuth on third and long. 

Fields 3 of 3 for 37 yards on the drive. He started things with a well-executed screen pass to Najee Harris for 16 yards and a completion on the near sideline to George Pickens for 15 yards. Just couldn't overcome the fumbled snap and 0 yards on 3 carries. 

 

A few things to keep on an eye from a Steelers perspective when Pitt has the ball: 

  • The frequency of the Steelers' going play-action and using multiple TE sets (both Arthur Smith staples). 
  • The progress of rookie linemen Zach Frazier, Troy Fautanu and Mason McCormick. 
  • The usage rate between Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris. 
  • Which complementary WR will step up? 
 

Few house cleaning items to take care of before kickoff: 

  • Regarding Brandon Aiyuk news, reports have surfaced that the Steelers and 49ers have not discussed anything in the past 24 hours. Over that span, the 49ers and Aiyuk have ramped up extension talks. 
  • Steelers OLB Markus Golden, who was recently signed by the team, has announced his retirement. 
 

Welcome to our coverage of Steelers-Texans. Should be a fun game between two playoff teams from a year ago. Both teams are starting the majority of their first-team units tonight, including Texans' QB C.J. Stroud. Justin Fields is getting the start for Pittsburgh with Russell Wilson inactive. 

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