Ben Roethlisberger again played on a badly sprained ankle. This time, the veteran quarterback couldn’t produce the kind of heroics that had burnished his reputation as a gamer a little more than a week ago. As a result, the Steelers still need help if they are to win a fourth AFC North title in five seasons under coach Mike Tomlin and avoid taking the wild-card route in the playoffs. San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith outdueled Roethlisberger, and the 49ers’ defense was anything but in the Christmas spirit as San Francisco beat the Steelers, 20-3, in a twice-delayed game at Candlestick Park.
The 49ers improved to 11-3, and the Steelers dropped to 10-4 and 4-3 on the road.
“We came out to the West Coast and got our butts whipped, plain and simple,” Steelers safety Ryan Clark said.
The Steelers could have seized control of the AFC North race and taken the inside track for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Instead, Roethlisberger committed four turnovers as the Steelers lost for the first time in seven Monday Night Football games under Tomlin.
The Steelers remain tied atop the division with the Ravens. Baltimore, however, owns the tiebreaker, and it will capture the division title if it beats Cleveland and wins at Cincinnati in its final two games.
The game turned in the third quarter after a 51-yard field goal by Steelers kicker Shaun Suisham had cut a six-point deficit in half.
The 49ers needed just five plays to cover 79 yards, and Smith completed three passes for 53 yards to tight end Vernon Davis, including a 1-yarder for the first touchdown of the game and a 13-3 advantage.
The Steelers could get no closer.
Roethlisberger threw for 330 yards, but he also tossed three interceptions and lost a fumble that set up the 49ers’ final touchdown.
“It’s very frustrating to feel like you let down your team,” Roethlisberger said. “I played a bad football game.”
Roethlisberger apparently played without taking an injection for his high ankle sprain.
“He played without a needle,” trainer John Norwig said.
Smith threw for 187 yards and a touchdown. He overcame a couple of early misfires and was not intercepted by a Steelers defense that did not force a turnover.
“We just didn’t give our offense a chance,” Clark said.
Neither did 49ers punter Andy Lee. The Pitt product averaged almost 50 yards per boot and consistently put the Steelers in bad field position.
The Steelers offense started fast, following a power outage that forced a delay to the nationally televised game. But a Roethlisberger interception in the end zone snuffed out their most promising drive in the first half.
Roethlisberger could not quite get into a groove in the first half, despite completing 14 of 23 passes for 161 yards.
The 6-0 halftime deficit could have been worse. Smith missed open receivers in the end zone on San Francisco’s first two possessions, and the 49ers had to settle for David Akers field goals.
The Steelers cut the deficit to 6-3 with six minutes left in the third quarter as Suisham had just enough leg in sneaking a field goal inside the right crossbar.
The 49ers wasted little timing in answering, and Suisham pulled a 48-yard field goal attempt with the Steelers trailing 13-3.
San Francisco put the game out of reach when Roethlisberger lost a fumble while getting sacked deep in his own territory early in the fourth quarter.
That led to an Akers field goal that the 49ers took off the board when Lawrence Timmons was called for unsportsmanlike conduct. Frank Gore vindicated the decision by scoring on a 5-yard run.
