All 32 NFL teams played their final preseason game on Thursday evening and a week from now, the regular season will kick off in Denver. The Pittsburgh Steelers must be more than ready to move on following a fourth exhibition loss in as many tries. Playing in hot, humid weather at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium, the Steelers (0-4, 0-2 away) dropped a 25-10 match to the Carolina Panthers (3-1, 2-0 home).
Down from the opening drive, the Steelers responded with an impressive touchdown drive of their own, but would never take a lead. Carolina led 17-10 at halftime and did not allow the Steelers to score in the second half, while forcing several turnovers and other mistakes along the way. The performance was typical of what head coach Mike Tomlin’s group produced throughout all four games, providing few highlights or individual accolades. Fortunately, most of the expected starters stood on the sidelines from the start, so the mediocre output will be mostly attributed to second, third, and even fourth string players who are battling for roster spots and depth chart status.
Among those who did play, QB Landry Jones played all four quarters and put together two quality scoring drives in the first half before struggling mightily in the second half. Jones connected with TE David Paulson for a 13-yard touchdown in the first quarter and he engineered a late drive after the two-minute warning that resulted in a Shaun Suisham field goal. Jones then went on to throw three second half interceptions, finishing 16-35 for 189 yards. Paulson was his favorite target, catching four passes for 41 yards and the score, and rookies Derek Moye and Markus Wheaton each caught two.
As for the ground game, Felix Jones and Jonathan Dwyer each averaged four yards per carry or more, but it never seemed like offensive coordinator Todd Haley could get them into a rhythm. The offensive line did a fair job of protecting the quarterback, but rarely opened up space for the backs. Most of the explosive offense in the game occurred when Panthers backup QB Derek Anderson, who started in lieu of Cam Newton, hooked up with WR Ted Ginn for long touchdowns, one of which went for 87 yards in the second quarter, opening up a ten point lead at the time. Anderson finished 10-15 for 220 yards and two touchdowns, while Ginn caught five passes for 149 yards.
After the late field goal in the first half cut the Panthers lead to 17-10, the Steelers could muster nothing of any significance, turning the ball over three times, including an interception just two plays after recovering a muffed punt return in the red zone. That interception, by Josh Norman, would have been returned almost the entire length of the field if not for great hustle by Derek Moye, who was a positive in another game full of negatives. Moye showed versatility as a receiver, strong burst after the catch, and he also a threat on special teams if Tomlin chooses to use him on return units.
That interception led to a field goal and a 20-10 lead, and the Panthers added another Graham Gano field goal and a safety in the fourth quarter. The safety came on a punt return that rookie Reggie Dunn, a hopeful to make the team based on his exceptional speed and agility, decided to pass up a fair catch and take the ball from the five yard line backwards toward the end zone where he could not get past a slew of tacklers and was thwarted in the end zone for an embarrassing exclamation point to the Panthers performance on this night. Dunn, and others, may face cuts, as Tomlin and his staff will soon finalize the 53-man roster that will take the field on Sunday, September 8 against Tennessee.
