The Pittsburgh Steelers picked off Daniel Jones three times and forced six total turnovers on the way to a 27-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in Pittsburgh.

It was a rough day for Jones, who lost two fumbles in addition to his three interceptions. He was also sacked five times, including twice by Alex Highsmith.

The mistakes were too much to overcome for the Colts, who lost despite outgaining the Steelers 368-225 and winning the time-of-possession battle by a 31:55-28:05 margin.

Indianapolis (7-2) saw its four-game winning streak come to an end, while Pittsburgh snapped a two-game losing streak to improve to 5-3.

BIG TIME PLAY BY SMITTY ‼️

📺 #INDvsPIT on @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/npLok6YUTu

— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 2, 2025

Steelers’ turnover magic returns

On many fronts, it looked like a nightmare matchup for the Steelers’ struggling defense. The Steelers have been inconsistent against the run and faced the NFL’s leading rusher in Jonathan Taylor. The Steelers have been poor against tight ends and had to deal with Tyler Warren, who entered the game as the league’s leading receiver at the position. The Steelers’ secondary entered the game allowing the most passing yards in the league and missing three safeties — DeShon Elliott, Chuck Clark and Jabrill Peppers. That forced Pittsburgh to start strong safety Kyle Dugger just days after he was acquired and move Jalen Ramsey to free safety full-time against the NFL’s highest-scoring offense.

However, in a game in which so many matchups seemed to favor the Colts, turnovers were the great equalizer. A Pittsburgh defense that hadn’t forced a turnover since Week 4 in Dublin won the turnover battle 6-1 and scored 24 points off takeaways.

The floodgates began to open early in the second quarter. With the Colts leading 7-0 and driving near midfield, T.J. Watt sacked Daniel Jones, forced a fumble and recovered it himself. The Steelers capitalized on the miscue with a 12-play, 56-yard touchdown drive, capped by a Jaylen Warren 1-yard run.

Two plays later, inside linebacker Payton Wilson intercepted Jones and returned the ball to the 14-yard line. The Steelers again took advantage of the short field with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to Pat Freiermuth.

In the third quarter, the Colts were driving into Steelers’ territory when Wilson got his hands on a pass at the line of scrimmage. Rookie outside linebacker Jack Sawyer intercepted the deflected pass for the Steelers’ fourth forced turnover of the game. The Steelers again made the most of the opportunity when Warren punctuated the seven-play, 56-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.

It didn’t stop there. Highsmith added a fifth Steelers takeaway in the fourth quarter, when he strip-sacked Jones and rookie Derrick Harmon landed on the ball. That led to a Chris Boswell field goal that extended the Steelers’ lead to 27-10. Joey Porter Jr. got into the action with an interception late in the game, the sixth Colts’ turnover of the game. — Mike DeFabo, Steelers beat writer

Colts’ turnovers too much to overcome

The Colts only committed four turnovers through their first six games of the season. They eclipsed that total with six turnovers Sunday in Pittsburgh en route to their first AFC loss of the season. Wide receiver Josh Downs muffed a punt in the first quarter, which Steelers cornerback Brandin Echols recovered. That miscue set Pittsburgh up at Indianapolis’ 11-yard line, but the Colts’ defense stood tall and forced a turnover on downs to preserve its 7-0 lead.

The Colts weren’t as fortunate the rest of the game. Jones, who entered Sunday’s contest with three turnovers this season, had five against the Steelers. He was strip-sacked by Watt in the first quarter; linebackers Wilson and Sawyer intercepted Jones in the second and third quarters, respectively; linebacker Highsmith strip-sacked Jones midway through the fourth quarter; and Jones was picked off again by Porter with just under three minutes left in the game.

The Steelers hadn’t forced a turnover since Week 4, but they converted three of Jones’ turnovers into touchdowns to snap Indy’s four-game winning streak. Jones finished 31-of-50 passing for 342 yards and one touchdown. He connected with Downs for a 4-yard TD later in the fourth quarter, and Jones scored a 1-yard rushing TD on the team’s opening drive. — James Boyd, Colts beat writer

Steelers stop the run — and pass rush feasts

The Steelers’ defense has been at its best this year when it stops the run, get the opponent in one-dimensional situations and let the pass rush feast. That was going to be a tough challenge against the Colts and Taylor, who entered the game as the NFL’s leading rusher.

The men in the trenches largely did their jobs. They limited Taylor to 45 yards on 14 carries, a 3.2 yard per carry average. Overall, the Colts managed only 55 rushing yards on 19 carries, a 2.9 yards per carry average.

The Steelers’ stout day against the run and the lopsided score forced Jones into plenty of obvious passing situations. As a result, Jones threw the ball more than 45 times. The Steelers sacked him five times, intercepted him three times and forced a pair of fumbles. — DeFabo

Jonathan Taylor shut down

Taylor’s early MVP candidacy took a major hit Sunday. After racking up 850 rushing yards and 12 rushing TDs through the first eight games of the year, the Colts star was held to a season-low 45 yards on 14 carries. His longest run was just 9 yards, and he failed to the reach the end zone for just the third time this season.

Wide receivers Michael Pittman Jr. and Alec Pierce led the way for Indianapolis offensively with 115 receiving yards apiece. Their big days marked the first time Indianapolis has had a 100-yard receiver in a game this season. Downs chipped in with six catches for 57 yards. — Boyd

No run game, no problem

The Steelers found an offensive identity over the last several weeks, using the running game to open things up for the rest of the group. On Sunday, it was tough sledding for the ball carriers. The Steelers averaged just 1.8 yards per carry on their 22 rushes. However, they remained balanced and Rodgers spread the ball to nine different targets in the passing game. Despite the lack of raw production on the ground, the Steelers scored a pair of rushing touchdowns in the red zone and didn’t allow themselves to get one-dimensional. — DeFabo