Marred by the loss of Ben Roethlisberger to a second half knee injury, the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to get a hard fought road win in St. Louis, defeating the Rams 12-6. Obviously the focus and narrative of yesterday’s contest was the loss of Roethlisberger to an MCL sprain that will likely keep him out for at least 4-6 weeks.
With a short turnaround game at home against the Baltimore Ravens set for Thursday night, let’s review yesterday’s game with our weekly Three up and Three down.
Three up:
• There was plenty of speculation on how the Steelers would use All-Pro running back Le’Veon Bell after his return from suspension. Mike Tomlin made it clear early in the week that they would hit the ground running with Bell, and that is exactly what they did in St. Louis.Well, sort of.
The Steeler offense immediately went to an up-tempo attack in the first drive and lined Bell up at wide receiver on a number of plays to start the game. Kudos to offensive coordinator Todd Haley for his creativity with Bell and DeAngelo Williams on that first drive, his ability to mix up the looks had the Rams confused and on their heals right off the bat.
Bell’s uncanny ability to catch the ball as a running back was on full display yesterday, as he ended the day with seven catches for 70 yards and added 62 yards and a touchdown on the ground. So much for shaking off the rust for Bell, who looked in mid-season form.
Finally, let’s not forget the remarkable efforts and consistency of Antonio Brown. Just another day at the office; 11 catches for 108 yards.
• If you want to look at a crucial stat in yesterday’s low-scoring contest that went down to the wire, look no further than the Rams inability to convert on third downs. The Rams offense struggled most of the day but especially trying to extend possessions, going 2-for-12 on third downs.
Credit a Steelers defense that struggled to force three and outs in the first two games of the season and was playing without Ryan Shazier. The Rams struggled all day to find ways to move the ball and were unable to convert in the red zone, settling for two Greg Zuerlein field goals instead.
Additionally, the Steelers were able to completely shut down the Rams rushing attack, limiting the trio of Bennie Cunningham, Tre Mason and rookie first rounder Todd Gurley to a combined 37 yards on 16 carries. Stephon Tuitt was once again terrific for a second straight week, posting six tackles and a sack.
Forced into a starting role, safety Will Allen had seven tackles and a key fourth quarter interception that sealed the win.
• I know that this is a tough topic for many Steelers fans, but how is the Michael Vick signing looking now? With Landry Jones being the only healthy quarterback left on the roster and Roethlisberger out for the foreseeable future, Vick could end up saving the Steelers season.
Vick will have a short week to get prepared for a desperate Ravens squad off to a 0-3 start, but can you imagine expecting Jones to step in and save the day on Thursday or any other day for that matter? Me either.
Three down:
• Losing Roethlisberger to a long-term injury is the worst case scenario for the Steelers. The good news is what looked like a possible season ending knee injury might only force the Steelers most important player to miss next four games, meaning the season is far from over folks.
It’s hard to sugar coat losing a franchise quarterback, and Roethlisberger was off to a tremendous start in 2015. How will this impact an offense that seems to be attempting to replace not only starters, but some of the best players in the NFL with alarming regularity? Bell? Pouncey? Now Roethlisberger? That’s tough, and it will be interesting to see how it impacts a player like Brown, who had such incredible symmetry with Big Ben.
• What is the deal with going for a two-point conversion with a chance to take a 10-point lead early in the first half? I hated the call at that point in the game and considering it was a contest that had the feel of a low-scoring, tight contest where every point might be important. That’s exactly how it played out, and with the Rams employing one of the best long-distance kickers in the NFL in Zeurlein, it was a risky move that could have easily backfired late.
Mike Tomlin got lucky on that one, as he would have faced serious criticism if that game had unfolded differently.
• Holy Martyball. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, it’s playing ultra-conservative, close to the vest on offense a la Marty Schottenheimer for head coach most notably with the Browns and Chiefs. That’s what came to mind watching the Rams yesterday under Jeff Fisher.
I get the idea and understand that Fisher was simply trying to stay within striking distance late, but his approach had to drive the few Rams fans at the game nuts. Fisher helped the Steelers cause with some extremely conservative calls throughout, absolutely way too predictable and this was just what defensive coordinator Keith Butler needed to get the Steelers defense in the right state of mind heading into the Ravens game.
