The Pittsburgh Steelers needed a win badly Monday night against the Houston Texans and got one, but some questions still remain.
Were the Steelers that good or did the Texans gift wrap a win for them?
Not being able to get a first down late in the first half gave Ben Roethlisberger the ball back with enough time to hit Martavis Bryant with a touchdown pass. Not being able to handle the ensuing kickoff meant Houston had to start deep in its own territory and one play later fumbled.
Instead of cutting their losses and heading into halftime down just three points, the Texans decided to throw an interception and the Steelers completely changed an underwhelming performance into a barrage of positive plays in a two-minute span.
These are usually things that happen to the Steelers so it was nice to see them on the other end of some gifts for a change.
There were some good things to be seen though as well.
With that being said, let’s take a look at how the Steelers graded out in my weekly Steelers Report Card.
Quarterback: Roethlisberger was under a lot of pressure throughout the night and did lose a fumble while being sacked three times, but otherwise the veteran was pretty solid. Big Ben completed 23-of-33 passes for 265 yards and a pair of scores. There are a few throws he would like to have back, but Roethlisberger played a lot better than he has in the past couple weeks. Grade: B
Running Backs: Le’Veon Bell was effective as a receiver Monday night, with a career-high eight catches for 88 yards. He only had 12 carries and gained 57 yards. Bell made three big plays with the ball in his hands and averaged close to five yards per carry. The other backs didn’t do much to help though as the Steelers rushed for only 77 yards on the night, a season low. Grade: B
Wide Receivers: Antonio Brown had another solid game with eight catches and 85 yards and the rookie Bryant finally was given a helmet and made an immediate impact, catching a 35-yard touchdown that started the second quarter momentum swing. Brown even threw a touchdown pass to Lance Moore. Grade: B+
Offensive Line: It was an up-and-down performance for the guys up front. The first half was ugly as they allowed three sacks and didn’t have a run longer than five yards. The second half was a different story as the line looked much better and even held J.J. Watt in check. Mike Adams had to fill in for an injured Marcus Gilbert and more than held his own. Grade: C
Defensive Line: Not a great performance by any stretch of the imagination and Texans’ running back Arian Foster did run for over 100 yards, including a whopping 81 in the first quarter. Brett Keisel’s tip and then interception turned out to be a huge play. Grade: C
Linebackers: Lawrence Timmons was the best player on the field, working sideline to sideline, recording 12 tackles and the Steelers only sack of the night. This is despite being sick. Jason Worilds made his presence felt and made a big play forcing a Foster fumble late in the second quarter. I also saw a lot that I liked out of Sean Spence, who recovered the Foster fumble. It was the best all-around effort the linebackers produced in a very long time. Grade: B+
Secondary: It felt like an average game for the defensive backs. A couple plays here and there stood out, including Mike Mitchell’s strip. They didn’t get beat deep though while they were behind and held their own for portions of the game. Ryan Fitzpatrick completed 21-of-32 passes for 262 yards, but threw for only 68 yards in the first half. Grade: C
Special Teams: Shaun Suisham and Brad Wing were solid kicking the ball and the coverage units deserve some credit. There were some mental errors though, including wasting a timeout before an onside kick and getting beat by a fake punt. The kick returners continue to do a brutal job as well. Grade: B-
Coaching: While the talk all week was each coach needs to go, that talk started to heat up more among Steelers fans with a very slow start. But Mike Tomlin’s team made some plays and came back to get a much needed win. It was very curious to see the Steelers come out in a nickel defense to begin the game and it was even crazier to see them stick with it after being gashed on the ground in the first quarter. The offense made some things happen after the Texans all but gift-wrapped a win for them. Grade: C+
Photo Credit: ESPN
