BUFFALO, N.Y. _ Le'Veon Bell rushed for a team-record 236 yards and tied another with three touchdown runs to lead the Steelers past the Buffalo Bills, 27-20, on a snowy day in upper New York on Sunday.
Their fourth consecutive victory temporarily lifted the Steelers into first place alone in the AFC North at 8-5. Second-place Baltimore (7-5) plays at New England on Monday night.
Bell carried 38 times to snap Willie Parker's previous record of 223 yards rushing.
The Steelers needed it on a day in which Ben Roethlisberger threw three interceptions. It was only the second time the Steelers won when Roethlisberger threw three interceptions or more. He has done so 11 times.
Rookie cornerback Artie Burns came up with his third interception and the Steelers sacked quarterback Tyrod Taylor five times, Bud Dupree getting him twice.
Chris Boswell, after missing one game with an abdominal injury, kicked a 37-yard field goal to boost the Steelers' lead to 24-7 after Roethlisberger's third interception, in the end zone, ended a previous scoring threat.
Buffalo answered when Tyrod Taylor threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Charles Clay to tighten the score to 24-13 after the extra point kick conked off the upright and no good.
Boswell came back to kick a 39-yarder with 3:38 left to lift the Steelers into a 27-13 lead.
The Bills closed to within one score, 27-20, by moving 75 yards in 2:13 to score on LeSean McCoy's 3-yard touchdown run with 1:25 left in the game.
Bell rushed for three touchdowns and 191 yards rushing through three quarters as the Steelers led the Buffalo Bills 21-7 heading into the fourth quarter today.
Bell scored his third touchdown rushing with 5:28 left in the third quarter. It was his 22nd carry of the game, for 149 yards and it was virtually all him on that 10-play drive.
Bell, who had 13 carries for 77 yards in the first half, carried nine of the 10 plays on that drive for 72 yards. The other was a third-down pass to Cobi Hamilton that picked up 15 yards.
It was obvious the Steelers decided to stick to the ground after halftime because Roethlisberger's two interceptions were the only things holding them back from turning the game into a rout in the first two quarters.
Bell ran for two touchdowns in the first half but two Roethlisberger interceptions kept the game close as the Steelers took a 14-7 halftime lead.
Bell ran for his second touchdown in two quarters, a 7-yarder through a gaping hole off the left side to pad the Steelers' lead to 14-0 with 12 minutes left in the first half.
That drive featured a fourth-and-one play at the Buffalo 40 in which Roethlisberger faked a handoff to Bell, and threw a pass to little-used tight end David Johnson for a 15-yard gain.
After the Bills offense went nowhere again, the Steelers had the ball and a 14-0 lead and looking to extend it. However, from his 25, Roethlisberger threw a pass for Antonio Brown that was off the mark and intercepted by cornerback Stephon Gilmore, who returned it 31 yards to the Steelers' 7.
On third down, Taylor threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Sammy Watkins and the Bills closed within 14-7 with 7:07 left in the first half.
It was Roethlisberger's second interception, costing his team one score and allowing the Bills another.
The Steelers got off to a good start and led the Bills 7-0 after one quarter.
After Roethlisberger's first interception wiped out a likely score on their first drive of the game, the Steelers took a 7-0 lead on Bell's three-yard snowplow touchdown run. Bell seemed to be stopped at the line of scrimmage when he and his blockers pushed a pile of Bills backward and he reached the end zone.
Roethlisberger pitched a deep pass to Antonio Brown, who was able to just get both feet in bounds after catching it for a 40-yard gain to Buffalo's 29.
On their first drive, the Steelers reached Buffalo's 15 but Roethlisberger was intercepted by linebacker Lorenzo Alexander to end that threat.
The Steelers had another score canceled later when William Gay intercepted a deflected pass and returned it for a 25-yard touchdown. However, that was negated by a holding penalty on linebacker Bud Dupree, giving the Bills a first down.
Buffalo's offense was under siege in the first quarter. The Steelers sacked Taylor three times on the Bills' first two possessions, four times in the half.
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