National Football League
Pittsburgh 24, Carolina 16
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, December 18, 2022
Where: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina
Temperature: 46°
Head Official: Scott Novak
Attendance: 73548

Najee Harris ran for a touchdown and racked up 86 yards on the ground as the Pittsburgh Steelers counted on ball-control offense and a solid defense to defeat the host Carolina Panthers 24-16 on Sunday at Charlotte, N.C.

Steelers quarterback Mitch Trubisky, who was given the starting assignment because Kenny Pickett has been in the concussion protocol, threw for 179 yards on 17-of-22 passing. Diontae Johnson caught 10 passes for 98 yards.

Harris had 24 carries as the Steelers (6-8) cling to remote playoff hopes.

Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold was 14 of 23 for 225 yards and a touchdown. An inept Carolina rushing attack managed 21 yards after posting more than 220 ground yards last week at Seattle.

The outcome dimmed the once-rising playoff aspirations of the Panthers (5-9), who entered the weekend one game out of first place in the NFC South.

Pittsburgh's 21-play drive covering 91 yards to open the third quarter consumed 11:43 and put the Steelers on top 21-7 after Trubisky's 1-yard run. The Steelers overcame a 15-yard unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty on the march.

Carolina had an 11-play drive on its next chance, settling for Eddy Pineiro's 29-yard field goal. The Panthers stalled again on their next drive and tacked on Pineiro's 32-yard field goal with 6:15 to play, closing the gap to 21-13.

But the Steelers kept the ball for the next five minutes and 13 plays later to seal the outcome on Chris Boswell's 50-yard field goal with 1:04 remaining. Pineiro had a 52-yarder with 19 seconds left, but the Steelers recovered the ensuing onside kick.

Harris began the scoring with a 7-yard run that came at the end of a first-quarter drive of more than seven minutes.

Carolina tied the game in the opening minute of the second quarter when Darnold threw 5 yards to DJ Moore in the end zone on third down to complete an 85-yard run that took more than 6 1/2 minutes. That possession included third-down conversions of 11, 13 and 5 yards.

Then the Steelers used nearly six minutes for a touchdown drive on their next possession, with Jaylen Warren running 2 yards for the score.

Carolina safety Jeremy Chinn finished with 14 tackles. The Steelers took 68 offensive snaps compared to Carolina's 43.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Pittsburgh   Carolina
Najee Harris Player Chuba Hubbard
24 Attempts 4
86 Yards 10
3.6 Avg Yards 2.5
1 Touchdowns 0
10 Long 3
Receiving
Pittsburgh   Carolina
Diontae Johnson Player DJ Moore
10 Receptions 5
98 Yards 73
9.8 Avg Yards 14.6
0 Touchdowns 1
19 Long 26
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Pittsburgh 325 156 169 3 1 0 4.0 1
Carolina 209 21 188 1 3 0 1.0 0
Upcoming Games
  • Carolina will play their next game at home against Detroit. The Panthers have a W/L % of .167 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Pittsburgh will play their next game at home against Las Vegas. The Steelers have a W/L % of .333 after a win and .500 after a loss.