PITTSBURGH (AP) – Brett Keisel saw the ball drop into his 36-year-old hands, and the Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end started chugging toward the end zone.
He didn’t quite make it, but the sight of the bearded veteran sprinting – more or less – in the open field proved fitting on a night the Steelers briefly turned back the clock to a time when the defense was dominant and the playoffs were a given.
Neither is the case anymore, though Keisel’s dash that set up Pittsburgh’s third touchdown in a 73-second stretch at the end of the first half of Monday night’s 30-23 win over the Houston Texans proved anything remains possible for a team that can’t figure out whether it’s good or bad or both.
“Old 99,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin joked. “We’ll give him the week off and see if he can get his body ready to go on a short week.”
It might take that long for the adrenaline to wear off as the Steelers (4-3) made another abrupt turn in a season that remains both promising and problematic.