PITTSBURGH — Once opponents get into the red zone, the Steelers take it as a challenge to keep them out of the end zone.

That’s part of the reason why Pittsburgh’s defense leads the league in stops inside the 20-yard line, including four goal-line stands in the past two weeks, entering Sunday’s road game against the Buffalo Bills.

“It’s a short field and teams feel like they can get it on you,” Steelers linebacker Lawrence Timmons said. “They want to get one up on you, so as a defense, when you stop that, you go out there and assert yourself in a certain way and that’s what we do.”

Timmons did as much when he came through with a game-changing interception at the goal line last Sunday against the New York Giants.

Timmons picked off Eli Manning and the Steelers’ offense capitalized with a touchdown a little more than a minute later. Linebacker Ryan Shazier later broke up a pass on fourth-and-1 from the 3-yard line, helping the Steelers win their third straight game.

“That’s huge when you have an offense about to score and you stop them,” Timmons said. “We’re just trying to stop them and get the ball back to our offense.”

The Steelers rank 19th against the pass, giving up 256 yards per game and 14th in total yards allowed at almost 350 per game.

But Pittsburgh leads the NFL in red-zone touchdown efficiency at 42.5 percent, as opponents have scored 17 touchdowns in 40 red-zone drives this season.

“We don’t want to let them get down there, but when they get down there, we have to keep them out,” safety Mike Mitchell said. “That’s our job.”

Pittsburgh gave up 113 points during a recent four-game losing streak, but the Steelers have stiffened since, allowing just 30 points the previous three games. The Steelers, ranked No. 7 in the league in scoring defense at 19.7 points per game, held each of their previous three opponents to 14 points or less for the first time since 2011.

“Teams are trying to score points and we’re just trying to shut them down,” Shazier said. “We practice that every day, so when we get down (in the red zone), we’re ready for the situation.”