Davante Adams’ reunion with Aaron Rodgers was spoiled by the debut of Russell Wilson, who led his Pittsburgh Steelers to a 37-15 victory over the New York Jets on “Sunday Night Football.”
While all the hype surrounded Adams reuniting with Rodgers, his old Green Bay Packers quarterback, following a trade from the Las Vegas Raiders earlier this week, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin made the switch at quarterback to Wilson over Justin Fields, seeing if the veteran Super Bowl champion could lead his offense the way he wanted to see it.
And while Wilson had to shake some rust off, the Steelers’ offensive engine steamrolled a good Jets defense with a brilliant performance from its signal caller.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson (3) warms up before the game against the New York Jets at Acrisure Stadium. (Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images)
Wilson threw for 264 yards on 16-of-29 through the air with two passing touchdowns, one to his top target on the night, George Pickens, and another to Van Jefferson.
Meanwhile, Steelers running back Najee Harris led a formidable ground game with 102 yards on 21 carries with a touchdown at the end of the game to cap an incredible night for Pittsburgh, as they moved to 5-2 on the year.
It was everything Steelers fans wanted to see with Wilson taking over at quarterback, but Jets fans were not expecting what they watched unfold on Sunday night.
DONALD TRUMP LEADS RAUCOUS ‘U-S-A!’ CHANT FROM SUITE AT STEELERS-JETS GAME
It’s not usual for a team to be in win-now mode after a 2-4 start to the season, but the Jets made the move for Adams, following the firing of head coach Robert Saleh, to give Rodgers yet another elite weapon to work with on offense.
But that dream connection that wreaked havoc on defenses for years in Green Bay was not seen immediately in Adams’ debut, as he caught just three of his nine targets from Rodgers for 30 yards. There is certainly rust that needs to be shook off between these two, but it did the Jets no favors in this matchup that Jets fans were hoping sparked a run.
Now, at 2-5, Rodgers and the Jets find themselves digging the hole a little deeper with its fourth straight loss this season.
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) throws pass against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. (Barry Reeger-Imagn Images)
New York did have a good start to this game, though, thanks to the work of Breece Hall, the Jets’ star running back who has gotten going these past two games despite the result on the record. He led the Jets in receiving – yes, receiving – on Sunday night with 103 yards on six catches, including a 57-yard catch-and-run that almost resulted in a touchdown.
He did score on the ground for the first touchdown of this game as the Jets got off to a 7-3 first-quarter lead.
But the second half belonged to Wilson and the Steelers, who put up 24 unanswered points to pull away from Gang Green in this one.
STEELERS ADD SECURITY MEASURES FOR TRUMP’S ATTENDANCE AT GAME AGAINST AARON RODGERS’ JETS
With former president Donald Trump in attendance, alongside ex-Steelers stars Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell, Wilson barreled in a quarterback sneak from one yard out after Ben Bishop returned an interception that bounced off the chest of Jets receiver Garrett Wilson to New York’s one-yard line.
That put the Steelers up 23-15 after Chris Boswell hit home a field goal to take the lead back earlier in the third quarter.
Then, a blocked field goal for the Jets sparked another Steelers touchdown drive, as Wilson found Jefferson from four yards out on third-and-goal to start running away.
The Jets would turn the ball over on downs as Rodgers desperately tried to get a touchdown drive to get back in the game. But it was all for naught, with Harris’s touchdown sending the Acrisure Stadium crowd into a frenzy with victory sealed.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens (14) celebrates an 11 yard touchdown pass with quarterback Russell Wilson (3) iagainst the New York Jets during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium. (Barry Reeger-Imagn Images)
As the Jets get back to the drawing board with a road trip to New England next week, Wilson appears to have earned himself at least another week after successfully leading his Steelers to a big win at home.
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