The Steelers, the biggest favorite on the NFL’s Week 5 schedule, lost at home to the Jaguars on Sunday, and that sound you hear are thousands of people tearing up their survivor pool sheets.
Jacksonville’s 30-9 victory was keyed by back-to-back pick sixes in the third quarter.
With the Jags trailing 9-7 with about 6 minutes to go in the third, linebacker Telvin Smith intercepted Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and returned it 28 yards for the score. Six plays later, Barry Church took one back 28 yards for 6, and after the extra point, Jacksonville led, 20-9.
SIGN UP to watch every NFL game this season on DAZN
Both third quarter picks were intended for Antonio Brown.
Those were the second and third interceptions thrown by Roethlisberger on the afternoon. His first came late in the first quarter, courtesy of Jalen Ramsey, a turnover that led to the Jags' first touchdown of the game, a two-yard dive into the end zone by Leonard Fournette.
Down 23-9 in the fourth quarter, Roethlisberger tossed his fourth pick, this time to Tashaun Gipson. His fifth, also snagged by Gipson, came with about 3 minutes left in game and the Steelers facing that still-manageable two-score deficit.
On the Jags' next possession, though, Fournette sealed the deal by busting a 90-yard touchdown run to put Jacksonville up 30-9.
The point spread at multiple Las Vegas sports books at kickoff was Pittsburgh -7.5, the largest of any NFL game Sunday.
The loss drops the Steelers’ record to 3-2, and Roethlisberger’s performance has to make Pitt fans a bit uneasy. He finished 33 for 55 for 312 yards, no touchdowns and the five aforementioned INTs, marking his third straight subpar effort. Over his last three games, he has two touchdowns and seven picks.
The Jags, meanwhile, have alternated wins and losses through the first five weeks of the season and sit at 3-2 as well. They got there Sunday in spite of their own quarterback, Blake Bortles, throwing for a mere 95 yards. A stellar performance by your defense and 181 yards and two touchdowns from your stud rookie running back, Fournette, goes a long way.