DENVER—Jay Cutler threw his third touchdown pass as the third quarter expired to give the Denver Broncos a 28-14 lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night.
Cutler hit tight end Tony Scheffler at the goal line and he fell into the end zone for the 1-yard score.
The Steelers’ Santonio Holmes held onto a 13-yard touchdown pass early in the third quarter after a crushing hit by Nick Ferguson in the end zone.
Larry Foote’s interception of an errant Cutler pass set up the Steelers’ touchdown drive.
Denver’s Elvis Dumervil stripped the ball from Ben Roethlisberger in the second quarter and rookie defensive lineman Tim Crowder picked it up, outracing Pittsburgh offensive linemen Sean Mahan and Alan Faneca for a 50-yard touchdown.
Roethlisberger settled down in the third quarter after a rough first half. He fumbled and was intercepted by Dre’ Bly and D.J. Williams.
Brandon Stokley caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Cutler in the first quarter and Cecil Sapp had a 1-yard touchdown reception in the second. Cutler has now thrown a touchdown pass in 10 of his 11 career starts.
The Steelers hadn’t allowed a first-half touchdown until Sunday.
Cutler scrambled before taking off down the middle of the field for a 31-yard gain that set up Sapp’s score. Troy Polamalu was flagged on the play for a blow to Cutler’s head.
The Steelers marched down the field with ease on their opening drive, which culminated with Roethlisberger’s 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Heath Miller. It was Miller’s third touchdown catch of the season.
Nate Washington had a 40-yard catch on a third-down play to keep the drive going.
The Broncos are last in the NFL in stopping the run and the Steelers have the second-best rushing offense. But Pittsburgh didn’t try to establish the run until the second quarter.
Running back Willie Parker had only three carries for 10 yards in the first quarter. He finished the half with 48 yards on 10 carries.
Bly had one interception and nearly had two more, but he couldn’t quite bring in errant passes by Roethlisberger. Williams’ interception came after fellow linebacker Ian Gold tipped a pass intended for Hines Ward.
Cutler was picked off by safety Anthony Smith in the end zone when he tried to go deep to Brandon Marshall.
The Steelers had allowed just 47 points through five games, the second-stingiest defense in the NFL.
Denver played without Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey, who missed a game for just the third time in his career Sunday night due to a left thigh injury.
Broncos No. 1 receiver Javon Walker had arthroscopic knee surgery Friday and likely won’t be back until December.
Walker tore through Pittsburgh last season, catching six passes for 134 yards. He also had a 72-yard touchdown run.
Before the game, there was a video tribute to cornerback Darrent Williams and running back Damien Nash. Williams was slain year in a New Year’s Day drive-by shooting that remains unsolved. Nash died following a charity basketball game in St. Louis two months later.
The mothers of the two former Broncos were on hand for the game. Rosalind Williams and Kim Nash walked out for the coin flip to a rousing applause.
The team has been wearing patches with the numbers of Williams and Nash affixed to their helmets all season.
