Pittsburgh Steelers vs Kansas City Chiefs Match Player Stats On Oct 25, 2015

The Sports Xchange
Oct 25, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Without their best running back and top wide receiver, the Kansas City Chiefs had limited offensive weapons for Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Arrowhead Stadium. But little known faces like running back Charcandrick West and wide receiver Chris Conley stepped forward and helped the Chiefs end a five-game losing streak with a 23-13 victory over the Steelers.

West, a second-year undrafted free agent out of Abilene Christian University, scored his first NFL touchdown on 1-yard run in the third quarter on his way to rushing for 110 yards while replacing injured Jamaal Charles. Conley, a third-round selection in the 2015 NFL Draft out of the University of Georgia, scored his first NFL touchdown on a 6-yard reception from quarterback Alex Smith in the fourth quarter. Conley caught six passes in place of injured Jeremy Maclin.

The Steelers were without starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for the fourth consecutive game, and backup Michael Vick was unavailable due to a hamstring injury. No. 3 quarterback Landry Jones made his first NFL start, and it was not an afternoon to remember, as he threw a pair of interceptions and lost a fumble on a sack by Chiefs outside linebacker Tamba Hali.

At times Pittsburgh was able to move the ball, as running back Le'Veon Bell ran for 121 yards and wide receiver Antonio Brown caught six passes for 124 yards. But only once were the Steelers able to reach the end zone.

The Chiefs are now 2-5 and head to London to face Detroit next Sunday. Pittsburgh is 4-3 and it will host the Cincinnati Bengals.

The busiest players in the first half were the kickers, as the halftime score of 9-3 was established with field goals. Kansas City's Cairo Santos hit from 22, 27 and 30 yards, but missed a 54-yard attempt. Pittsburgh's Chris Boswell made a 24-yarder.

The successful field goals all came because neither offense was productive inside the opponent's 20-yard line. The Steelers had a first-and-10 at the Chiefs 14-yard line and couldn't get near the end zone. Kansas City's offense had possessions on first down at Pittsburgh's 13-, 19- and 9-yard lines and settled for three pointers on all three opportunities.

It was late in the third quarter before a touchdown was added to the scoreboard, as West dove over the pile on a third-and-goal snap just inches off the goal line. Santos' PAT kick gave the Chiefs a 16-3 lead.

But Landry moved Pittsburgh in for a touchdown just before the end of the period, connecting with wide receiver Martavis Bryant on a 19-yard scoring pass. Bryant made an ankle-buckling double move on Chiefs cornerback Sean Smith, who fell down and allowed Bryant wide open access to the end zone. That cut the deficit to 16-10. Pittsburgh later added another field goal from Boswell, this one from 36 yards, and the Steelers pulled within three points.

But the Chiefs' offense put together one of its best drives of the last month, as Smith took the team 84 yards on eight plays before he connected with a Conley for a 6-yard touchdown pass. The PAT kick gave the Chiefs a 10-point lead with just over five minutes to play.

NOTES: the Chiefs scrambled their beleaguered offensive line, making changes at three of the five spots. Eric Fisher moved from right to left tackle. Jeff Allen started at right tackle and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif opened at right guard. It was Allen's first action of the season with the offense ... Steelers CB Antwon Blake left the game in the second quarter to be analyzed for a possible concussion. He returned to the field at the start of the second half. ... The 1-yard touchdown by Chiefs RB Charcandrick West was the first for the Kansas City offense in the last 15 quarters of play.