Baltimore Ravens have hung on for a 22-20 victory over AFC North rivals Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium.
John Harbaugh's side took the lead after five minutes, with Joe Flacco firing seven yards to Torrey Smith before Justin Tucker kicked the extra for a 7-0 advantage.
Tucker went on to score a 43-yard field goal to stretch the Ravens' lead with just over three minutes remaining before half time, before making it 13-0 five minutes after the restart.
The visitors finally got on the board in the first quarter thanks to a reverse pass from Ben Roethlisberger that found Emmanuel Sanders alone in the endzone.
However, two more field goals from Tucker either side of the break between third and fourth quarters made it 19-7 to the Ravens.
The Steelers refused to lie down and got themselves back in the game when Le'Veon Bell rushed the endzone from a yard with just under 10 minutes left to play at M&T Bank Stadium.
Tucker nudged the home side further clear with his fifth field goal of the evening, but once again Roethlisberger came up with the goods, finding Heath Miller for a 20-yard touchdown.
Bell looked to have scored his second touchdown of the game when he charged headlong for the line, only for his helmet to be knocked clean off half a yard before reaching the endzone.
That brought an immediate end to the play and, after review, the touchdown was taken away. There was a moment of concern for Bell, who was flat out following the tackle and had to be helped off the field.
Mike Tomlin's men kept going though, and got their reward when Roethlisberger found Jerricho Cotchery, setting up a two-point conversion with one minute and three seconds left on the clock.
The quarterback went left for Sanders, but the ball slipped through the grasp of the wide receiver, meaning that the Ravens still had their noses in front.
The Ravens ran the clock down when the Steelers made a mess of the onside kick, taking their record to 6-6.
Michael Penkman
