Roy Blount’s book “About Three Bricks Shy of a Load” chronicled the 1973 Steelers, a talented team that was a few pieces short of being a championship club. That title may be day be used to describe the Steelers’ current team if they continue to play the way they did while building a 16-0 halftime lead over visiting Lions in the final game of the preseason.
Pittsburgh’s talented defense set up two of its four scores during the game’s first 30 minutes. Twice, the unit gave the offense the ball deep in Lions territory. But the offense, plagued by miscues on the offensive line, was unable to do much with either opportunity, settling both times on short Chris Boswell field goals. The offense finally found its groove at the end of the first half, as Mitch Trubisky hit Steven Sims for a six-yard score. Deep completions from Trubisky to rookie wideout George Pickens and tight end Pat Freiermuth set up the score.
The Lions didn’t do much on offense, but they did have success holding the Steelers’ defense to field goals instead of touchdowns after starting on a short field. First-round pick Aiden Hutchinson contributed to a sack on Trubisky, while fellow first-round pick Jeff Okudah came up with a big play when he broke up Trubisky’s pass for Pickens in the end zone early in the second quarter.
Here’s how you can follow the action in real time. Be sure to check out our live blog below for updates, highlights and analysis in real time.
How to watch
Date: Sunday, August 12 | Hour: 4:30 p.m. ET
Location: Acrisure Stadium (Pittsburgh)
TV: NFL Network | Stream: NFL+
Follow: CBS Sports App
Odds: Steelers -5.5