The Pittsburgh Steelers opened up their 2016-17 NFL season with a dominant 38-16 win over Washington.
A lot of pressure was put on the offense, what with the suspensions of Le’Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant and Markus Wheaton’s injury. The Steelers’ defense also had some pressure on them, as their inconsistency last season led to the Steelers to drafting two defensive backs early in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Without further ado, here are the first grades of the 2016-17 season.
Quarterback: Ben Roethlisberger, who enters his 13th NFL season, threw for 300 yards and completed 27 of 37 passes. Roethlisberger found his receivers for three touchdowns and only threw one interception, which came from poor communication with second-year wide receiver Eli Rogers. Roethlisberger was very consistent against the tough Washington defensive backs. Grade: A
Running Backs: DeAngelo Williams has earned the right to have people stop asking about his age. After a slow start to the night, he came through for the Steelers in the second half, scoring two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Williams had 26 rush attempts, notching 143 yards. As for backup Fitzgerald Toussaint, he helped relieve Williams at times, rushing three times for six yards. Still, no matter what, it was the Williams show. Grade: A
Wide Receivers: Even with the almost fumble by Antonio Brown in the first quarter and the Rogers-Roethlisberger miscommunication, the Steelers’ wide receiving corps still get a high grade. Rogers certainly made a name for himself against Washington, catching six passes for 89 yards. He notched his first NFL touchdown after some bobbling in the endzone where the ball eventually fell to him.
Antonio Brown, when he wasn’t dancing, was being the clutch, go-to man for Roethlisberger. Brown led the wide receivers with eight receptions for 126 yards, and he grabbed two touchdowns to help solidify the win. After being quiet for the most of the night, Sammie Coates came through, too, with two clutch receptions for 56 yards. Grade: A-
Tight Ends: Jesse James, or as people on Twitter called him last night, “Heath Jr.,” had a fairly consistent night for the Steelers, finishing with five receptions for 31 yards. He doesn’t block like Heath Miller did, but he’s still learning. And when it did come to blocking, that’s where the Steelers relied on veteran tight end David Johnson. Grade: B
Offensive Line: Roethlisberger was only sacked once against the Washington defense, and Williams ran for two touchdowns with major help from the offensive line. Needless to say, the offensive line did their job — and they did it very, very well — without suffering any injuries. That’s a plus. Grade: A+
Defensive Line: The defensive line couldn’t get to Washington quarterback, Kirk Cousins, for any sacks. However, the line did hold Washington running backs Matt Jones and Chris Thompson to only 47 combined yards. (Still, Thompson did record Washington’s only touchdown of the night.) Grade: B+
Linebackers: The linebackers had an outstanding night, specifically Ryan Shazier. According to Shazier, who left the game early with a right knee injury, he is OK and ready to go in next week’s game. That’s good for the Steelers, as Shazier dominated Washington’s running backs and wide receivers. Shazier recorded an interception and a forced fumble, while fellow linebacker James Harrison also recorded an interception. Grade: A
Defensive Backs: This was the area where the Steelers needed to improve during the offseason. And while they made some steps toward fixing the secondary, it’s still not perfect. Against Washington, they allowed some big gains from Washington’s receivers, especially late in the third quarter. And cornerback Ross Cockrell got called for pass interference on Pierre Garçon — a reasonably ticky-tacky PI call that easily couldn’t have been called — that brought the Redskins to the two-yard line.
Cousins threw for 329 yards, and while he didn’t throw for any touchdowns, that’s still a lot of yardage accumulated on passes. The Steelers need to trim that number down if they want to keep winning in a dominant fashion. Grade: B-
Special Teams: Kicker Chris Boswell has officially taken over the reins as Shaun Suisham’s replacement. Boswell converted all five of his extra point attempts and made a 46-yard field goal.
The Steelers’ didn’t see much of Jordan Berry, the punter. When you don’t see much of the punter in a football game, it’s a good thing. On his two punts, Berry averaged 45 yards, with his longest being a 61-yard punt. Greg Warren, the long snapper, didn’t muffle a snap. A job well done by the special teams men. Grade: A+
What’s Next?
The Steelers will host the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on Sunday, September 18 for a 1 p.m. EDT kickoff time.
Image credit: Mark Tenally/AP Photo
