Many heroes stepped up during key moments during the Cowboys’ 20-17 victory in Pittsburgh.

The match was delayed 83 minutes due to thunderstorms that arrived about 15 minutes before kick-off, but I would like to thank the unsung hard workers of the evening: the Acrisure Stadium groundsstaff.

The thunder during the delay was intense and loud. The rain was coming down in buckets. If Noah were still alive, he would have started building an ark. I wouldn’t be surprised if the animals at the Pittsburgh Zoo gathered together two by two. On a scale of 1 to 10, the rainfall was a Spinal Tap “11.”

But when it was time to tee off at 9:46 PM Eastern, the playing surface held up and there were few instances of players slipping and sliding on a too-slippery field. There were no muddy areas. The natural grass, Kentucky bluegrass to be more specific, certainly left players with stains on their jerseys and pants, but the field conditions were playable considering the amount of rain that fell in a short period of time. And once the front passed over the city, the wind died down and did not affect the kicking game.

Kudos to the stadium staff for maintaining the natural grass field that did not succumb to the extreme conditions.

Kudos also to the 67,380 fans who braved the elements. Due to the NFL’s policy regarding lightning, fans were not allowed to remain in their seats during the storm. The sold-out crowd packed the halls until the lightning stopped. But when everyone was finally allowed to return to their seats, it seemed that this was the case. From field level it was difficult to see an empty seat.

But this was once again a hot ticket and the fans wanted to get their money’s worth. Cowboys fans did a good job getting plenty of seats behind the visitors’ bench. The average price of an online resale ticket the day before the game was about $560. On the team bus ride from the hotel to the stadium, I looked again and the least expensive ticket in the upper corner of the 500 level was $281.

Kill time: What do players do during a 1 1/2 hour weather delay? They hang around in the locker room trying to stay stretched/loose and keep the focus on the task at hand. They took off their shoulder pads, but not their cleats. The strength and conditioning staff earned their keep Sunday night by keeping the boys stretched.

Zeke Elliott was surprised after the game to hear how long the delay was. He said it didn’t feel that long. Special teams coordinator John Fassel said the delay allowed time for good “camaraderie” between the players as they tried to stay loose. Like fans and media, players/coaches/staff were in a holding pattern until the thunderstorms finally passed.

Deuce wasn’t wild: RB Deuce Vaughn was inactive game day for the first time this season as coaches decided to “go long” at the linebacker position to help fill a void on special teams. The decision is an example of the domino effect of injuries in the defense. Chauncey Golston and Marshawn Kneeland started DEs in place of Micah Parsons (ankle, inactive) and DeMarcus Lawrence (foot, injured reserve). Both Golston and Kneeland are key special teams players. But because of their larger role on defense, they wouldn’t be used as often on special teams. Backup LB Buddy Johnson was not only active for this game, he also served as the game captain for special teams. And LB Nick Vigil was promoted from the practice squad to the 53-man roster on Saturday. Johnson and Vigil got the catch, but it cost Vaughn a chance to make a play. There were six LBs active instead of five.

Rookie WR Ryan Flournoy made his NFL debut after spending one game day inactive for the first four weeks. Flournoy was the fifth receiver behind CeeDee Lamb, Jalen Tolbert, Jalen Brooks and KaVontae Turpin. With Brandin Cooks (knee) moved to injured reserve on Saturday, Flournoy could see more snaps while Cooks recovers.

The three amigos: The knee injury suffered by Kneeland on the fourth play of the game for the Cowboys defense meant that only three healthy/active DEs were available for the final 49 minutes of action. Golston was a starter. His backup, Carl Lawson, was already expecting to get a lot of snaps as part of the rotation. Lawson was named off the practice squad for the third straight week.

But it was Tyrus Wheat who really had to step up in Kneeland’s absence. Wheat played just 13 total defensive snaps through the first four weeks, so Sunday’s game was by far the biggest workload of his two-year NFL career. He was assessed a passer penalty on the first scrimmage play of the second half, but overall Wheat was a key contributor on a defense that allowed just 226 total yards and limited the Steelers to 3 of 12 on third down -down-conversions (25). % conversion rate).

Wheat finished the game with the following stat line: 0.5 sack, 1 tackle-for-loss, 3 tackles, and 1 QB hit. Golston and Lawson also finished with 0.5 sacks, as did DT Osa Odighizuwa. Wheat’s three tackles were as many as he collected in 12 games as a rookie.

Injury bug bites rookies: Kneeland (right knee) needed a cart to take him from the blue medical tent on the sideline to the locker room. After the game, he was on crutches as he left the locker room.

Starting LT Tyler Guyton injured his knee in the second quarter. He was able to walk to the locker room under his own power. He returned to the sideline for the second half in full uniform. As the third quarter started, Guyton warmed up on the sideline, got into a pass protection stance and tested his ability to shoot from his stance. For a moment I thought he might come back into the game, but that didn’t happen. He watched the second half from the sidelines.

With Kneeland and Guyton both injured, the Cowboys were without their picks in the first and second rounds of the most recent draft.

Tyler Smith changes positions: Instead of thanking backup OT Asim Richards for taking over for Guyton, LG moved Tyler Smith to left tackle and backup guard TJ Bass entered the game at left guard. Smith, of course, played LT in his rookie year when Tyron Smith suffered a serious hamstring injury a week before the regular season opener, but this is the first time Tyler has been pressed into service at LT this year.

Photos: Cowboys rally for comeback win in rainy Pittsburgh

View gallery

Untimely fine: Backup G Brock Hoffman is a hard-nosed player, the kind of guy who plays through the echo of the whistle. He’s a feisty guy and that suits him… most of the time. It cost the team in the fourth quarter when he was given an unnecessary roughness penalty.

Hoffman had only started the game three plays earlier when Zack Martin developed calf cramps and went to the locker room for an IV to treat his dehydration. Martin returned for the next offensive sequence.

Both Martin and Tyler Smith had been treated for calf cramps on the sideline earlier in the fourth quarter. Athletic trainers used heat balm and/or portable wireless massagers on the linemen’s calves. At field level it felt damp as the air was heavy after all the rain.

McCarthy’s homecoming: The weekend was a homecoming for McCarthy, a Pittsburgh native. He had over 30 family/friends in attendance for the game, including a visit to the sideline prior to the game.

Saturday evening, McCarthy went to his parents’ home in Pittsburgh’s Greenfield neighborhood, a short 15-minute drive from the stadium. He was hanging out with parents Joe and Ellen and other family members when he got a surprise: QBs Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush and assistant coaches Scott Tolzien and Ryan Feder showed up for the family gathering.

After the meeting, the QB contingent headed out to eat at the local pub. It is no longer called Joe McCarthy’s Bar because Mike’s father sold it many years ago. Although the name has changed a few times now, the location is still a pub and the QBs would eat where Mike grew up and help his father serve the locals.

Hand sanitizer, please: As we waited outside the lavish post-game locker room to be admitted for player interviews, a Steelers sideline staffer asked if I could give Zeke Elliott something before he headed to the team bus. I said yes, not realizing it would be a dirty, game-worn sweater that, in retrospect, was probably full of booties. The jersey had been worn by RB Najee Harris, so it was grass-stained, sweat-stained and soaked. Yes, it was pretty dirty. But it was also really cool because Najee had written a message to Zeke about the numbers: “Good luck, Broth… Always been a fan… #Legend”.

Kristi Scales is the sideline reporter for the Dallas Cowboys Radio Network. She writes this column for The Dallas Morning News after every Cowboys game.

Find more Cowboys coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.