SAN DIEGO — Le’Veon Bell scored on a 1-yard wildcat run as time expired to give Mike Vick and the Pittsburgh Steelers a stunning 24-20 victory over the San Diego Chargers on Monday night.
With 5 seconds left, Bell took the direct snap, ran left and was buried in traffic before diving for the end zone and getting the ball across the line as Donald Butler dragged him down.
Thousands of Pittsburgh fans waving Terrible Towels went nuts as the Steelers improved to 3-2. San Diego dropped to 2-3.
Vick, having an awful game until the fourth quarter, kept the drive alive with a 24-yard scramble up the middle and then a 16-yard pass to Heath Miller one play before Bell’s big run.
San Diego rookie Josh Lambo kicked a go-ahead, 54-yard field goal with 2: 56 left.
NOTES
CHIEFS: Running back Jamaal Charles will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL in his right knee.
The star running back hurt his knee in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss to Chicago. An MRI on Monday confirmed the tear.
Earlier Monday, Coach Andy Reid said “the worst case is the ACL is torn. That’s probably the direction it’s heading.”
Charles was making a cut deep in Bears territory on Sunday when his right knee buckled at a gruesome angle. The four-time Pro Bowl selection needed help from a trainer and linebacker Justin Houston to get off the field, never once putting any weight on the leg.
Charles tore the ACL in his other knee four years ago, missing most of the season.
COWBOYS: Brandon Weeden didn’t last long as the starter in Cleveland. Now he might not make it to the end of his temporary assignment filling in for the injured Tony Romo in Dallas.
Weeden couldn’t move the offense while the Cowboys had heavy pressure on Tom Brady with a defense rejuvenated by the return of Greg Hardy and Rolando McClain from suspensions.
After Brady and New England got rolling in a 30-6 victory, Dallas Coach Jason Garrett essentially declared the quarterback competition open with Romo missing at least four more games because of a broken left collarbone.
Weeden is 0-3 as Romo’s replacement, extending his personal losing streak to 11 starts going back to his days as a first-round pick by the Browns. And Matt Cassel, acquired in a trade with Buffalo after Romo’s injury, is ready to play. He was active for the first time against the Patriots.
EAGLES: A pep talk in the shower kickstarted the Eagles’ lackluster offense.
Before leading Philadelphia to a 39-17 win over New Orleans on Sunday, Sam Bradford gathered players near the showers and fired them up with a speech.
“Sam told us to play like the way he knows we can play because he has confidence in us,” wide receiver Josh Huff said.
CARDINALS: Arizona signed veteran defensive end/outside linebacker Dwight Freeney to a one-year contract, a person with knowledge of the situation said Monday.
The move comes after the Cardinals’ top outside pass rusher, Alex Okafor, went down with a calf injury in Sunday’s 42-17 victory at Detroit.
JAGUARS: Gus Bradley is sticking with his guys – the ones on the sideline and the ones in the booth.
The Jacksonville Jaguars coach said Monday he’s not making any changes following a 38-31 loss at Tampa Bay. It was the team’s third consecutive loss and 12th in a row on the road.
• Quarterback Blake Bortles sprained his throwing shoulder in a 38-31 loss at Tampa Bay on Sunday.
The team said Bortles suffered a “Grade 1 AC joint sprain” early in the game but played through it. Added Bradley: “We think he should be in good shape” to play against Houston on Sunday.
JETS: Defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson will have precautionary X-rays on his sore ribs that limited him at practice in the team’s return from its bye-week break.
RAMS: Defensive end Chris Long is week to week with a right knee injury and the team anticipates guard Rodger Saffold will miss some time with a shoulder injury.
FALCONS: Center Mike Person, who left Sunday’s win over Washington with a sprained ankle, is expected to miss Thursday night’s game at New Orleans.
BILLS: Running back Cierre Wood will miss the remainder of the season because of a knee injury.
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