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Brooke Pryor, ESPN Staff Writer
PITTSBURGH — For the first time this season, a Pittsburgh Steelers opening drive ended in the end zone.
Najee Harris ran the ball in from 10 yards out, finding a hole behind tight end Darnell Washington, to score the first points of Thursday night’s game against the Tennessee Titans.
Najee up the middle for an opening drive @steelers TD!#TENvsPIT on Prime Video
Also available on #NFLPlus https://t.co/SEBKoOkzMq pic.twitter.com/07eUlBFrbT— NFL (@NFL) November 3, 2023
The touchdown is Harris’ second of the season.
Before Harris’ score, the Steelers, along with the New York Jets, were the only teams that hadn’t scored any points on the opening drive. The Steelers last scored a touchdown on the opening drive in Week 15 against the Carolina Panthers last season.
Not only did the Steelers score a touchdown, but it was also their first time running a play in their opponents’ territory on the first drive. Entering Thursday, the Steelers had gone four straight games without a first-half touchdown. In that span, the Steelers also didn’t score any points in the first quarter.
Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett, playing through a ribs injury sustained against the Jacksonville Jaguars, completed 5 of 7 attempts for 62 yards — including two third-down conversions — on the drive.