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The Seattle Seahawks’ meeting with the Pittsburgh Steelers turned into a wild affair, but Earl Thomas III and Co. stuck together and came away with an enormous victory.

The two teams combined to score four touchdowns and a field goal in the fourth quarter, but the Hawks, who had a season-high four interceptions, weathered the storm at CenturyLink Field. ET III finished with six tackles, and his assessment afterward was simple: It wasn’t perfect, but Seattle got the job done.

“It feels good. It feels right. That’s who we are,” Earl said of the team victory. “I think sometimes success makes you lose sight of that. But we played great as a defense. We played great as an offense. At times we weren’t clicking, we had some bonehead plays. But, like I said, that’s the game. I really go out there and just play free. You’re going to mess up anyway. We went out there and ran around, got the job done.”

The game featured plenty of fireworks, including a strange setup for Seattle’s first score. Pittsburgh took an early 3-0 lead and drove down to the Seahawks’ 27-yard line at the end of the first quarter. The Steelers lined up for a field goal then shifted out with backup quarterback Landry Jones in the backfield. He rolled right then threw back left toward 6-foot-9 lineman Alejandro Villanueva. Corner Jeremy Lane was there to pick it off and return it 54 yards, setting up Russell Wilson’s first of three touchdown passes to Doug Baldwin.

That first score opened the floodgates and set off a string of four straight touchdowns traded off by the teams before halftime. The Steelers answered with an 11-yard touchdown run by Martavis Bryant, but the Seahawks responded on the next drive with a 12-yard scoring reception by Jermaine Kearse.

Pittsburgh answered right back with a six-yard rushing touchdown by DeAngelo Williams. The visitors converted the two-point conversion to take an 18-14 lead into halftime. The Steelers continued the scoring frenzy early in the second half with a field goal to make it an even 21-14 lead.

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger put up big yardage against the Legion of Boom, amassing 456 yards, and afterward Earl explained just what makes Big Ben so good.

“I think his footwork in the pocket is one of the best in the game,” Earl said of Roethlisberger. “That, as an aggressive defensive back like me, it’s tough the whole game because I want to bite down and be aggressive. But he definitely takes advantage of those type of players and situations.”

The Hawks defensive front made a big play on the Pittsburgh QB the next drive, though. Roethlisberger was intercepted by defensive lineman Ahtyba Rubin, and the Seattle offense capitalized in just two plays. Wilson hit tight end Jimmy Graham for a 36-yard gain, which set up a one-yard rushing touchdown by Thomas Rawls.

Shortly thereafter, the L.O.B. made its presence felt. Roethlisberger looked deep toward one of the league’s top deep threats in Antonio Brown, but only Richard Sherman was there. The Seattle corner made the interception, and Wilson and Co. capitalized again. This time, Wilson found Kearse for his second touchdown, putting Seattle up 26-21.

Unfortunately, the lead didn’t last long, as the fourth quarter dam broke. It took just three plays for Markus Wheaton to break free on a 69-yard touchdown reception, making it 27-26, Steelers.

However, Wilson and the Hawks weren’t finished either. A nice first-down scramble by Wilson, and solid receptions by Tyler Lockett and Baldwin put the Hawks within striking distance. Then Wilson found Baldwin again for a 30-yard touchdown, which gave the Seahawks the lead once again, 32-27.

Seattle never did let go of that lead, and the team’s overall offensive performance left Earl licking his chops for the coming weeks. ET praised Wilson, who threw for 345 yards and a career-high five touchdowns on his 27th birthday.

“Oh, he was in the zone,” Earl said of Wilson. “I don’t know if it was because it’s his birthday today but he was definitely in the zone. The receiving core, the running game, the offensive line, I’m excited about our offense.”

After that score, it was the defense’s turn—and the Hawks bent, but they didn’t break. Wheaton and Williams each made key plays on the drive, but ET III and Co. held strong in the red zone, forcing Pittsburgh to settle for a field goal on 4th-and-Goal from the three-yard line, making it a one-possession game, 32-30.

But with Wilson and Baldwin clicking, it didn’t stay that way for long. On 3 rd-and-9, Wilson hit Baldwin underneath for first-down yardage, and the Seattle receiver broke free. He ran through one tackler and stiff-armed another, streaking down the sideline for an 80-yard score.

“First of all, I don’t know what made me get him in fantasy today, but I started him. So he had a big day as far as my fantasy team,” Earl said of Baldwin.

The L.O.B. had one final play to make. Kam Chancellor intercepted Jones, who replaced an injured Roethlisberger at quarterback, to seal the game with less than two minutes to go. Afterward, No. 29 praised the team play by his team—but he was mostly happy that the Seahawks finished in yet another close fourth-quarter battle.

“I’m just glad we finished. We got the win,” Earl said. “I think it’s just playing for each other. I don’t think we’re focusing on do or die. I think we’re just focusing on staying in the moment and trying to play for each other. It’s coming together these past couple of weeks.”

PLAYOFF PICTURE

The Arizona Cardinals (9-2) edged the San Francisco 49ers to keep their NFC West lead at three games. However, a loss by the Atlanta Falcons (6-5) moved the Seahawks (6-5) into a tie for sixth place in the NFC Wild Card standings.

1. Carolina Panthers (11-0) – NFC South leaders
2. Arizona Cardinals (9-2) – NFC West leaders
3. Minnesota Vikings (8-3) – NFC North leaders
4. Washington Redskins (5-6) – NFC East leaders
5. Green Bay Packers (7-4) – Wild Card 1
6. Seattle Seahawks (6-5) – Wild Card 2
7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New York Giants, Chicago Bears (6-5)

NEXT UP

If the season ended this week, the Seahawks would play the third-seeded Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card round. But even though the season hasn’t ended, the Hawks will play the Vikings anyway.

This will be the first of two straight road games for Seattle. The Vikings are coming off a 20-10 victory over the Falcons and have won six of their last seven games.

Minnesota is lead by a trio of playmakers: second-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson and rookie receiver Stefon Diggs. Diggs leads the team with 604 receiving yards, but ET III will also have to contend with a talented tight end, Kyle Rudolph, who boasts four receiving scores on the year.

Earl is 2-0 against Minnesota for his career. He’ll look to go 3-0 when the Hawks and the Vikes kickoff at 10 a.m. PT at TCF Bank Stadium. The game will be broadcast on FOX.