Steelers vs. Titans 2012: Pittsburgh 'grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory' on Thursday

The Pittsburgh Steelers couldn't find a way to hang on to a 23-16 lead over the Tennessee Titans in the fourth quarter, as the Titans rallied to tie and then win in the closing seconds, 26-23.

After Titans quarterback Matt Hasselbeck hit receiver Kenny Britt for a five-yard touchdown to tie the contest with under five minutes remaining in the fourth, Pittsburgh drove and set up a 54-yard field goal attempt for Shaun Suisham, which fell short.

Following a long completion, Bironas sealed the win with a 40-yard field goal.

In his recap, Neal Coolong of Behind the Steel Curtain, after saying, "Injuries ravaged the Steelers in their 26-23 loss to Tennessee. So did their past in another disappointing road loss; another game where they grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory," added some thoughts on where the blame should fall:

"Without the Steelers' top two running backs, or a healthy two-thirds of their interior offensive line, they were unable to run the ball with any semblance of consistency in the fourth quarter in particular, when they held a 23-16 lead ... Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor is as much to blame in this loss as anyone, never appearing to have any discernible strategy other than grabbing hold of his assignment (oftentimes Britt) and hoping officials didn't notice."

Now sitting at 2-3, the Steelers are banged up and under-.500, as Coolong finished his piece with this:

"In total, it's a rough loss, and another peak into what appears to be a bleak current outlook for the Steelers season. Injuries are difficult to overcome, but it shouldn't have been this hard."