NEW YORK: The Pittsburgh Steelers punished an error-strewn New York Giants display to clinch a 26-18 victory and extend their strong start to the NFL season on Monday. The Steelers moved to 6-2 for the season to take top spot in the AFC North ahead of the Baltimore Ravens thanks to two touchdowns from wide receiver Calvin Austin at Acrisure Stadium.

An attritional first quarter saw defenses on top, with Steelers kicker Chris Boswell and Giants counterpart Greg Joseph bagging three field goals apiece to make it 9-9 at half-time. But the Steelers scored the first touchdown of the night in the third quarter with a moment of magic from receiver Calvin Austin.

The 25-year-old looked to be well covered after gathering Matt Haack’s 54-yard punt deep in Steelers territory. But Austin showed superb acceleration to surge into space down the left-hand side of the field, sprinting into the end zone for a 73-yard punt return to make it 16-9.

The Steelers looked to have taken a stranglehold on the game early in the fourth quarter when Austin then bagged his second touchdown of the night, coolly collecting a 29-yard pass from quarterback Russell Wilson to make it 23-9 after Boswell’s extra point.

New York though breathed life into the contest on the next possession, with running back Tyrone Tracy exploding through the Steelers defense and sprinting 45 yards to the end zone for a touchdown. Giants quarterback Daniel Jones completed the two-point conversion with Malik Nabers to close the gap to eight points at 23-15.

Boswell and Joseph then swapped field goals again to make it an eight-point game. The Giants appeared to have grabbed a lifeline after forcing a Pittsburgh fumble on the next possession deep in Steelers territory.

But five plays later the New York drive fizzled when Jones was sacked for the fourth time to hand the ball back to Pittsburgh. The Steelers punted, but New York’s final drive ended when Jones was picked off by cornerback Beanie Bishop to ice the game. – AFP