SoFi Stadium is roughly 2,400 miles from Heinz Field, but Steelers fans have made Sunday night's game feel like a home game for the black and gold. A partisan Steelers crowd welcomed Pittsburgh to the field prior to the start of Sunday night's game between the Chargers and Steelers.
This isn't the first time that Steelers fans have taken over a Chargers home game. In 2019, Pittsburgh fans took over the Chargers' temporary home -- StubHub Center -- during the Steelers' 24-17 win on "Sunday Night Football." A generous amount of Steelers fans took in Pittsburgh's final game in San Diego in 2015, as Le'Veon Bell's walk-off touchdown gave the visitors a 24-20 win on "Monday Night Football."
One player who did not play in either of those two games is quarterback Ben Roethlisberger -- who was injured in both instances, as Michael Vick started for the Steelers in 2015, and Devlin 'Duck' Hodges got the start in 2019. Big Ben is on the field on Sunday night after spending the past week on the reserve/COVID-19 list. After a slow start, Roethlisberger showed marked improvement during Pittsburgh's four-game winning streak that has helped the Steelers move into second place in the AFC North division standings.
This is the first game between the Steelers and Chargers second-year quarterback Justin Herbert, who is looking to help Los Angeles snap a two-game losing streak after a 5-2 start. Herbert will try to exploit a Steelers defense that will be without All-Pro pass rusher T.J. Watt, All-Pro free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and three-time Pro Bowl cornerback Joe Haden.
