Just when you thought things we're getting interesting, Kevin Kolb tossed a pass at the feet of his lineman as he was being wrapped up by linebacker LaMarr Woodley in the back of the endzone resulting in a safety (his league-high third intentional grounding penalty of the year). While the flag was extremely late, it was the correct call nonetheless, giving the Steelers a 26-14 lead.
The Cardinals did strike first in the third quarter when LaRod Stephens-Howling turned a simple crossing pattern into a 73-yard touchdown when he outran the entire Steelers defense. But it wasn't 17-14 for long, as the Steelers responded by driving back down the field and extending the lead to 10 with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger juked Cardinals linebacker Clark Haggans out of his shoes on the play, avoiding what should have been an easy sack to find Sanders standing alone in the back of the endzone.
For the most part, Roethlisberger has had all the time he's needed to tear up the Cardinals secondary for three touchdowns. The Cardinals inability to pressure the quarterback doubled with the fact that the Cardinals have been bottling up Rashard Mendenhall and Co. all game have caused head coach Mike Tomlin to almost entirely abandon the run despite a 12 point lead.
The Cardinals haven't been able to muster up any sort of running game their selves, with Alphonso Smith only totaling five carries for 17 yards since the Beanie Wells injury.
The Cards will definitely have to start moving the ball better if they are to surmount this deficit within the final fifteen minutes.