Tampa Bay’s defense generated a season-high five sacks against Rodgers after going without a sack in the previous two games. Emerging young pass rusher David Walker had two of them, increasing his team lead to 4.0. Rookies Rueben Bain Jr. and Keionte Scott, teammates at the University of Miami and fellow 2026 draft picks, each recorded their first career sack and veteran free agency addition Al-Quadin Muhammad also got on the board. Incredibly, defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson, who had one interception in his first 10 NFL seasons, picked off a pass for the second time this season on a deflection, setting up a field goal. In the end, though, it wasn’t enough to add up to a victory.
“The only success is wins and losses,” said Bowles. “I don’t weight success off of pressure or not pressure.”
The Bucs got the ball first and Tez Johnson took the kickoff back to the Bucs’ 30. Irving got the ball on the first two snaps but the net gain was just one yard. The drive ended quickly and badly when slot corner Jalen Ramsey came on a blitz and got to Daniels quickly, spinning him to the ground all the way back at the 16. Riley Dixon’s punt took a bounce back in the wrong direction and was downed at the Bucs’ 44.
Rodgers threw the ball away out of bounds due to tight coverage on first down and the Steelers soon faced a third-and-eight. Pressure from LB Josiah Trotter put Rodgers on the run and he eventually threw it away again. The Steelers chose a punt over a 60-yard field goal try and Tez Johnson fair caught it at the Bucs’ 12.
Daniels’ pass on first down was batted down in the backfield before Irving got five on a run out of the shotgun. Daniels found WR Chris Godwin past the sticks but the veteran receiver uncharacteristically dropped the pass. A flag on Pittsburgh on the return put the ball at the Pittsburgh 36-yard line, and the subsequent drive only lasted one play. Rodgers tried to lob it to jumbo TE Darnell Washington on a tight end screen but it was a little off target and Washington could only deflect it, with the ball ending up in the hands of Robinson at the Pittsburgh 39.
Two tackle-breaking runs by Ramsey got six yards each and moved the sticks but his next run lost five yards and two plays later it was third-and-15. Daniels settled for a check-down to RB Kenny Gainwell, who got seven, bringing on McLaughlin to try a 43-yard field goal. The kick appeared to bet tipped at the line but it still snuck through to give the home team a 3-0 lead.
A penalty on the Steelers negated a long return on the next kickoff and put the ball at the 20. Warren got only two on a first-down run but a second-down swing pass worked a lot better as it was blocked up to give him a lane to the 38. Dowdle got the next carry and also found a seam to exploit, zipping straight upfield for 13 more to get just past midfield. Parrish moved quickly on a run to his side by Dowdle, stopping him for a loss of two, and a short pass to Washington made it third-and-seven at the Bucs’ 46. Rodgers hit WR Germie Bernard with a short pass but CB Zyon McCollum brought him down three yards short of the sticks. The Steelers lined up to go for it on fourth down, then called a timeout. They sent the offense back out but a blitzing Tykee Smith made Rodgers get the ball out too fast and though it was completed again to Bernard it was behind the sticks and OLB Yaya Diaby spun him down to create a turnover on downs.
The Bucs came on at their own 40 and Daniels had another pass deflected in the backfield. This time he caught his own pass for a loss of three yards, and on the next play he threw an out to Godwin for four yards. Daniels went right back to Godwin on third down and the receiver turned upfield and was able to run past the line to gain for a first down at the Pittsburgh 46. However, Daniels then took another sack, this one by Nick Herbig, move it back 10 yards. A square-in to Egbuka worked for a big gain of 16 and Daniels next pass went to WR Ted Hurst, low and hard, just beyond the line to gain. On first down from the 35, Daniels went through his reads and eventually found Godwin in the right flat for a gain of 11 on the final play of the first quarter. On the first play of the second period, Daniels delivered a perfect pass to Hurst near the goal line. Hurst couldn’t haul it in because CB Dalen Everette had one of his arms hooked, but that drew a pass interference call, putting the ball at the two-yard line. On the next play, Egbuka leaked wide open into the front left part of the end zone and Daniels hit him easily for the touchdown.
The Bucs’ coverage squad walled off return man Kaden Wetjen at the Pittsburgh 23, but a swing pass to WR DK Metcalf opened the drive with a gain of six. On third-and-four, Rodgers tried to throw a short pass out to the right to Warren but LB Christian Rozeboom was all over the play, arriving at the receiver at the same time the ball did for a PBU. Johnson took the ensuing punt back to the Bucs’ but a holding penalty moved it back to the 11.
Irving gave the Bucs some breathing room on the very next play, starting right then cutting back around the left edge for a gain of 13. Two short passes to Johnson and Egbuka put the Bucs into a third-and-threebut the Bucs had to punt after Daniels was forced into a quick scramble and eventual throwaway. Dixon’s next punt was fair caught at the Pittsburgh 34.
Dowdle found nothing but a wall of defenders up the middle on first down and got only one yard, but Rodgers got off a sideline pass to Bernard that the rookie was able to turn up for 14 yards nearly to midfield. Dowdle found a much more agreeable seam on his next carry and shot through it for 15 more to the Bucs’ 37. He got it two more times, on a run and a throw, but only got four yards to make it third-and-six. Rodgers threw short again and the Bucs’ defense made him pay, with Scott closing quickly on Bernard a yard short of the first-down marker. The Steelers sent out K Chris Boswell to try a 48-yard field goal. McCollum nearly blocked it and perhaps influenced the kicker to hook it wide left and no good.
Irving started the next drive with a three-yard run and Daniels then saw the field open up in front of him and sprinted through it and to the left for a gain of 17. Gainwell came on to take his first handoff and alsofound an opening, squeaking through it and bouncing out to the right for another 14 to the Steelers’ 28. Daniels tried to scramble up the middle again but this time was dropped for a loss of one. His next pass was to an open Egbuka but it was delivered too low and the receiver couldn’t quite pluck it off the grass. The Bucs used a timeout then called an out-and-up to Egbuka, with the ball just out of reach and off his left hand. McLaughlin drilled a 47-yard field goal to put the Bucs up 13-0 with four minutes left in the half.
Scott blitzed out of the left slot on first down and ran down Rodgers from behind for an eight-yard sack, and he also made the tackle on second down after Warren ran for three, making it third-and-15. Rodgers tried to hang in the pocket long enough to push the ball downfield but it collapsed on him and Bain got through his first NFL sack, forcing a punt as the two-minute warning arrived.
Cameron Johnston’s punt bounced out of bounds 53 yards downfield at the Bucs’ 25. A false start took it back another five yards and a swing pass to Egbuka out left was complete but didn’t gain a yard. After an Irving run for six yards, Daniels tried a deep out to Egbuka right at the marker but it was broken up and nearly intercepted by former Buccaneer Jamel Dean. WR Kameron Johnson had great coverage on the resulting punt and was able to spun Wetjen down singlehandedly at the Pittsburgh 20. Two straight underneath passes to TE Pat Freiermuth gained 11 yards but ran the clock under a minute. OLB Al-Quadin Muhammad deflected an attempted swing pass to Dowdle but two plays later Rodgers found Bernard for a 12-yard gain to the Bucs’ 47 and the offense ran up to spike the ball with 15 seconds left in the half. The next pass also went to Bernard and he got to the ground at the Bucs’ 34, giving the offense enough time to reconvene and spike it again with three ticks remaining. Boswell came on to drill a 52-yard field goal and get the Steelers on the board before halftime.