PITTSBURGH -- With 21 seconds left in the first half on Dec. 9, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense ran its first no-huddle play against the Minnesota Vikings.

Before it could even get going, right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor was whistled for a false start. The next two no-huddle plays – on the second drive of the third quarter – had mixed results: A 23-yard gain for Najee Harris followed by a Ben Roethlisberger interception.

But by the next drive, the Steelers found a rhythm. Using no-huddle in seven of 11 plays, the Steelers marched 75 yards down the field to score their first points of the night.

“We’ll go no huddle, and we’ll get a spark,” wide receiver James Washington said. “Somebody will make a play downfield … That’s really all we need is that one play to pop off, and I feel like we’re going from there.”

The Steelers have danced around defining the up-tempo offense as no-huddle, one where Roethlisberger, not offensive coordinator Matt Canada, would largely be in charge of making the calls. Asked about a no-huddle offense after the Week 2 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, Roethlisberger said the team didn’t have one. It’s a two-minute offense, Roethlisberger said then.

But no matter the name, the change-of-pace is working for the Steelers. Deployed primarily in the second half, the no-huddle offense is responsible for jumpstarting an otherwise stagnant Steelers offense. But this week, coach Mike Tomlin said it’s a possibility to go to the quick offense earlier.

“When you let Ben flow with the flow of the game, he usually dials up some stuff that works and gets us down field,” Washington said.

Both Roethlisberger and Canada said the concepts and menu of plays in the two-minute -- or tempo offense -- haven’t changed much from the beginning of the season. The difference is they’re starting to go to it more.

“When you get down or whatever, you kind of have to go to it,” Roethlisberger said. “I think the goal would be to use it just to change tempo, not because you’re down or you’re up, but just to change the tempo sometimes. So it’s just different. Guys are learning and evolving with it.”

Not only does the tempo keep defenses off-balance and sometimes without necessary personnel, it also allows Roethlisberger and the offense to play instinctually, building on his signature freelancing gunslinger abilities.

“He’s playing comfortable,” wide receiver Diontae Johnson said after beating the Ravens. “He’s calling what he sees. He’s able to adjust whenever he wants to. We’re comfortable, as well. Not taking anything from the OC, but we’re just doing whatever [Roethlisberger] tells us to do, and the offense just rallies around him.”

The numbers show the Steelers are better when they go faster.

The Steelers’ average time of possession per play is 20.6 seconds in the fourth quarter, fifth-fastest in the NFL -- and a much faster pace than the 38.3 seconds per play in the first. The Steelers’ points scored per quarter is also higher in the fourth quarter than the first, jumping from 2.62 to 10.23.

Some of that, of course, is game circumstance. Because they’re not generating consistent offense in the first half, the Steelers often find themselves in desperation mode in the second. With that comes the urgency and the faster pace.

“Some of it is dictated by the game, and you see it a little more continually (in the second),” Canada said. “We’ve gotten down a couple games to where you’ve seen it more play after play. Using it more as a tempo changer at times. And sometimes we’ve got to go fast to catch up.”

Most of the time, it works. Against the L.A. Chargers and Vikings, the Steelers faced deficits of 17 and 29 points, respectively. They wound up erasing the deficit against the Chargers with a 27-point fourth quarter, but still fell short. And the Steelers came within one possession of tying it up with the Vikings.

Johnson also credited the no-huddle offense with aiding the second-half comeback in the win against the Ravens.

“We were wearing them down up front,” he said. “You started seeing them put their hands on their hips, get tired and we’re able to keep going, show our conditioning. We harp on getting off the ball and getting in and out of the huddle. That showed and we were able to wear them down, get the run game going, put points on the board.”

The Steelers were hesitant to incorporate much no-huddle early in the season because of the inexperience on the offensive line and some of the skill players. But rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth is onboard with hurrying it up.

"Our system on the no-huddle is pretty simple and pretty player-friendly," Freiermuth said. "It allows us to play fast. So almost all the young guys are real used to it."

In order for the no-huddle to be most effective, Freiermuth said, the Steelers have to first pick up a first down on a drive. The Steelers are in the bottom half of the league in first downs per game, averaging 19.4 per game and 18.3 in the last three games.

"It’s hard to keep a hurry-up offense going if you aren’t going to get the initial first down," Freiermuth said. "If you are behind the chains on second down or third down, it’s kind of hard to get up-tempo or get that right play, to get that first down –- and then when you get that first first down, then you can get going.

"We have to put ourselves into the situation where you get that first down, and then we can get into that hurry-up game if that’s what we choose to do.”

Tomlin said after the Vikings loss he was going to turn over every stone to fix the ailing Steelers. After marginalizing one of Roethlisberger’s best traits for too much of what could be his final season in Pittsburgh, that should include mixing in no-huddle sooner, beginning Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS) against the Tennessee Titans.