Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers throws past Pittsburgh Steelers' Devin Bush during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Randall Cobb demonstrated why Aaron Rodgers wanted the veteran receiver back in Green Bay.

Rodgers connected with Cobb for two touchdowns and ran for another score as the Packers won their third straight, 27-17 over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Cobb began his career in Green Bay and played for the Packers from 2011-18 before landing in Dallas in 2019 and Houston last year. The Packers reacquired Cobb at the start of training camp at Rodgers’ request.

“He’s still a really good player,” Rodgers said.

Cobb caught a 23-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter to put the Packers (3-1) ahead for good and scored again on a 1-yard reception that made it 27-10 in the third period. That short throw was the 420th TD pass of Rodgers’ career, tying Dan Marino for sixth all-time.

Cobb said it didn’t take long for him to adapt to playing alongside Rodgers again.

“He understands how I move, so whenever I’m getting ready to break on my route, he knows,” Cobb said. “It’s muscle memory. It’s been a couple of years, but it’s kind of like when you get back around your friends and you remember things that you hadn’t even thought about in so long. It’s kind of that connection that we have.”

Through the first three games, Cobb had four catches for 58 yards. He caught five passes for 69 yards Sunday.

Rodgers and Cobb connected on two third-down completions that set up Green Bay’s touchdown. Cobb’s go-ahead score also came on third down.

“I pride myself in being the third-down guy,” Cobb said.

Rodgers went 20 of 36 for 248 yards and scored the Packers’ first points on a 4-yard rush in his first home start against the Steelers, the only team he hadn’t faced at Lambeau Field.

After falling behind 7-0, Green Bay scored 27 of the next 30 points to seize control.

“I thought that was a mature win,” coach Matt LaFleur said.

“Just our whole mentality all week, it was very workmanlike. Guys came in very focused. I felt the energy was great.”

Pittsburgh (1-3) has lost three straight, failing to top 17 points in each game, after a surprising season-opening win at Buffalo. Since opening the 2020 season with 11 straight wins, the Steelers have lost eight of 10.

“It’s still super early in the season,” Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt said. “At home next week, and just like every week, it’s a got-to-have-it. But this feeling definitely sucks.”

It was the first time Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger had faced off as starting quarterbacks since Green Bay edged Pittsburgh 31-25 in the Super Bowl on Feb. 6, 2011. Roethlisberger led the Steelers to wins over Green Bay teams quarterbacked by Matt Flynn in 2013 and Brett Hundley in 2017, as separate collarbone injuries prevented Rodgers from playing in either game.

Roethlisberger threw his 400th career touchdown pass on the game’s opening series — a 45-yarder to Diontae Johnson — and became the eighth player to reach that milestone. That ended an 11-game stretch in which Pittsburgh’s offense had failed to score any first-quarter points.

But the Steelers didn’t return to the end zone until Najee Harris scored from 1 yard out with 4:10 left in the game. Roethlisberger ended up going 26 of 40 for 232 yards with an interception.

“I’ll look in the mirror and start pointing the thumb at me, figuring out how to make it better,” Roethlisberger said.

Pittsburgh got a tough break just before halftime as a penalty wiped out a touchdown off a blocked kick that would have put the Steelers ahead.

Green Bay led 14-10 when Pittsburgh’s Minkah Fitzpatrick blocked Mason Crosby’s 26-yard field-goal attempt. Fitzpatrick recovered the ball and raced 75 yards to the end zone, but officials called Pittsburgh’s Joe Haden offside. Crosby made the ensuing 26-yard field goal with 5 seconds left in the first half.

Crosby added a 29-yarder in the third quarter for his 24th consecutive successful field-goal attempt, breaking his own franchise record. Crosby made 23 straight from 2010-11.

INJURIES

Steelers: CB Cam Sutton (groin) and OG Kevin Dotson (leg) left the game.

Packers: CB Jaire Alexander (shoulder) left in the third quarter.

UP NEXT

Steelers: Host Denver next Sunday.

Packers: At Cincinnati next Sunday.

GIANTS 27, SAINTS 21

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Saquon Barkley ran for a 6-yard touchdown in overtime after Daniel Jones passed for a career-high 402 yards, and the New York Giants rallied for their first win of the season, 27-21 over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

JETS 27, TITANS 24, OT

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Matt Ammendola kicked a 22-yard field goal in overtime, and then Randy Bullock was wide left on a potential tying 49-yarder with 15 seconds left to give New York its first victory.

CHIEFS 42, EAGLES 30

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw five touchdown passes three different ways, including three to Tyreek Hill, and Kansas City beat Philadelphia.

CARDINALS 37, RAMS 20

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Kyler Murray passed for 268 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 39 more yards in a virtuoso performance, and Arizona extended its longest unbeaten start since 2012 with a victory over Los Angeles.

SEAHAWKS 28, 49ERS 21

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Russell Wilson overcame a shaky start to throw for two touchdowns and run for a third and Seattle rebounded from back-to-back losses by beating San Francisco.

RAVENS 23, BRONCOS 7

DENVER (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw for 316 yards, including a 49-yard touchdown pass to a diving Marquis Brown, and Baltimore used a relentless defense to swat Denver from the ranks of the unbeaten.

WASHINGTON 34,

FALCONS 30

ATLANTA (AP) — Taylor Heinicke ad-libbed a 30-yard touchdown pass to J.D. McKissic with 33 seconds remaining, rallying Washington over Atlanta.

BROWNS 14, VIKINGS 7

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Myles Garrett and the Cleveland defense produced another dominant performance, giving coach Kevin Stefanski a victory over his old team as the Browns beat Minnesota.

COWBOYS 36,

PANTHERS 28

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dak Prescott threw four touchdown passes, Ezekiel Elliott had his first 100-yard rushing game of the season against the NFL’s No. 1 defense and Dallas beat Carolina.

BILLS 40, TEXANS 0

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds had the first of Buffalo’s four interceptions, and the Bills suffocated the offensively inept Houston.

BEARS 24, LIONS 14

CHICAGO (AP) — Rookie Justin Fields brushed off a nightmarish first start, and Chicago bounced back from one of the worst offensive performances the NFL has seen to beat winless Detroit.

COLTS 27, DOLPHINS 17

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Carson Wentz threw a pair of touchdown passes to Mo Alie-Cox, Jonathan Taylor rushed for 103 yards and a score and Indianapolis got its first win of the season by topping sputtering Miami.