At first blush, a 38-35 score would not indicate a good defensive day for either side. And sure, the Pittsburgh Steelers had their blunders, centered around multiple coverage breakdowns that resulted in big plays and points for the Oakland Raiders.
But one element had that throwback, classic Steelers vs Raiders feel: the physicality. Mike Tomlin praised his defense for that Tuesday.
“Largely, from a positive aspect, I thought we were an extremely physical. Physical up front, phyiscal at linebacker, physical in the secondary, and that physicality aided in our efforts. There were a lot of balls on the ground and things of that nature.