[7] These incidents culminated in Brown reportedly getting into a heated argument with Roethlisberger and benched for the final game of the season against the Cincinnati Bengals as a result, then storming out of the team facility and ignoring all contact from teammates, coaches, and the front office.
[10] Brown also openly called out Smith-Schuster via Twitter[11] and Instagram in April 2019[12] due to his game losing fumble in a Week 16 loss to the New Orleans Saints, which crippled the Steelers playoff chances.
[13] Following the season, fans, commentators, and numerous current and former Steelers lamented the conflict inside the organization, with some blaming the team culture for the late season collapse (which included four close, mistake-filled and penalty-prone losses within the final six games) and head coach Mike Tomlin for his inability to control a drama-filled locker room.
After a scoreless first quarter, the Steelers struck first in the second when second-year RB James Conner ran for a 4-yard touchdown to make it 7–0 at halftime.
In the fourth quarter, the Chiefs moved ahead by double digits as Mahomes found Tyreek Hill on a 29-yard pass to make it 42–28.
The Steelers scored twice to come within 5: first when Hunt was tackled by Artie Burns and Morgan Burnett in the end zone for a safety followed by Roethlisberger's 3-yard run for a touchdown to make it 42–30 and then 42–37.
The Steelers continued to score heading into the second quarter: they took the lead with Chris Boswell's 38-yard field goal to make it 9–7.
In the second half, it was all Bucs as they would outscore the Steelers 17–0 heading into the fourth quarter when Catanzaro kicked a 28-yard field goal to make it 30–13 in the third.
In the fourth, the Bucs ended up coming within 3 when Fitzpatrick threw 4-yard and 24-yard passes to Chris Godwin and Mike Evans to make it 30–20 and then 30–27.
The Steelers completed the comeback when Ben Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown on a 31-yard pass (with a successful 2-point conversion) to make the final score 28–21.
In the second quarter, the Steelers took the lead when Ben Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown on 2 touchdown passes: from 43 and 1 yard to make it 7–6 and then 14–6 by halftime.
In the third quarter, the Steelers increased their lead as a holding penalty in the end zone on Browns offensive tackle Desmond Harrison led to a safety, making the score 16–6.
A day prior to this game, eleven people were killed when a mass shooting occurred in the Squirrel Hill section of Pittsburgh.
In the second quarter, the Steelers went up by double digits as Ben Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown on a 6-yard pass to make it 14–3.
Ben Roethlisberger became the second quarterback to record a perfect 158.3 passer rating in four games in his career, after Peyton Manning.
After a scoreless first quarter, the Jags put up 3 field goals in the second when Josh Lambo converted from 48, 38, and 43 yards out to make it 3–0, 6–0, and then 9–0 at halftime.
From then on, it was all Steelers scoring when Ben Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown on a 78-yard pass to make it 16–6 heading into the fourth quarter.
On the Steelers' final offensive drive, Roethlisberger ran for a 1-yard touchdown to make it 20–16 with five seconds remaining in the game, completing the comeback victory.
The Steelers tied it up when Boswell found Alejandro Villanueva on a 2-yard pass on a fake field goal to make it 10–10 at halftime.
The Broncos then tied it up again when Keenum found Emmanuel Sanders on a 5-yard pass to make it 17–17 following a Chris Harris Jr. interception of Roethlisberger.
In the fourth the Broncos retook the lead and went on to win the game when Philip Lindsay ran for a 2-yard touchdown to make the score 24–17.
Roethlisberger tried to rally the Steelers into a potential overtime period, but his 3rd-and-goal pass intended for Antonio Brown would be intercepted by Shelby Harris with a minute left to play, sealing the win for the Broncos.
The Steelers struck first in the first quarter when James Conner ran for two 1-yard touchdowns to make it 7–0 and then 13–0 (due to a failed PAT) but the Chargers would respond on a controversial touchdown, due to movement on the Chargers offensive line before the ball was snapped, when Philip Rivers found Travis Benjamin on a 46-yard pass to make it 13–7.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Raiders would retake the lead in the fourth when Derek Carr found Lee Smith on a 3-yard pass to make it 17–14.
Pittsburgh got the ball one final time, advancing deep into Raiders territory with a hook and lateral play from James Washington to Smith-Schuster, but kicker Chris Boswell slipped and missed the potential game-tying field goal.
In the second quarter, the Steelers moved back into the lead when Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown on a 17-yard pass to make it 14–7 at halftime.
The Pats were able to drive down the field with under 2 minutes left, but after a penalty which would back them further away from the first down marker, Brady would throw 4 straight incompletions to end the game with that final score.
In the fourth quarter, the Saints were able to complete the comeback when Drew Brees found Michael Thomas on a 2-yard pass to make the final score 31–28.
The Steelers would eventually trade Brown to the Oakland Raiders on March 10, 2019 for a third-round and a fifth-round pick in the 2019 NFL draft.
However, the Ravens would win that game sending the Steelers to second place in the division, officially missing the playoffs for the first time in 5 years, thus capping off a disappointing and bitter end to one of the most turbulent seasons in franchise history.