Pittsburgh Steelers Week 7 Winners and Losers
The Steelers finally got into a rythm on both sides of the ball this past Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals. There were a lot of positive takeaways from this game, including a resurgence by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Let’s get to it.
Here are my Steelers winners and losers from week 7 against the Bengals:
Winners
Ben Roethlisberger
Despite completing just 58 percent of his passes, this to me was Roethlisberger’s best performance of the season so far. Big Ben marched the offense down the field and scored a touchdown on the opening drive. He let the Steelers to 20 first-half points. Though the offense stalled in the second half, Ben did enough to help his team win this one. His 224 passing yards and 2 touchdowns look pretty modest, but Ben did a good job overall in this one.
Le’Veon Bell
Bell got a lot of work in this game – 38 touches to be exact. Though his 3.8 yards per carry on the ground was nothing to brag about, Le’Veon punished Bengal defenders play after play. He was also extremely effective through the air – catching 3 balls on 3 targets for 58 yards (19.3 avg.).
JuJu Smith-Schuster
While Martavis Bryant‘s stock is trending in the wrong direction, JuJu continues to impress. Smith-Schuster made the most of his 3 targets – turning them into 39 yards and a touchdown. He continues to be a beast in the run game, and for the first time this season, he wasn’t penalized.
Ryan Shazier
Shazier has always possessed the ability to make plays. The two biggest concerns I had with him was his ability to stay healthy and his consistency game-to-game. Shazier has rarely been banged up this season (knock on wood), and has been perhaps the most consistent player on the team. With another dominant showing against the Bengals, Shazier may very well be headed to the Pro-Bowl this season.
David DeCastro
DeCastro continues to grade roads for running backs in Pittsburgh. The All-Pro guard continues to set himself apart as the best offensive lineman in a talented group, and shows fans why his name belongs among the best in the league at the position.
Roosevelt Nix
Here’s a guy that doesn’t get nearly enough credit in the run game. Roosevelt Nix cracked skulls all afternoon, and helped pave the way for Le’Veon Bell to have a monster performance against the Bengals. Let’s give Rosie a pat on the back.
Joe Haden
Haden has been improving each week for the Steelers. He’s had a relatively quite start to the season (which isn’t always a bad thing for cornerbacks), but he made his presence felt in this game. Joe Haden and company held A.J. Green to just 3 catches for 41 yards. He added a diving interception to help solidify a win for Pittsburgh. If he keeps playing like this, the Steelers may want to keep him around – despite the money he’s due after 2017.
Sean Davis
Sean Davis will miss the occasional tackle or pick the wrong gap now and then, but when he’s playing well, the Steelers defense is hard to score against. Davis has now had three very solid games in a row. His ability to play both the run and the pass makes him a valuable asset to Steelers defense. Davis had five tackles and a great pass deflection that resulted in a William Gay interception.
T.J. Watt
We couldn’t ask much more out of a rookie than what the Steelers are getting from T.J. Watt. He’s physical and aggressive. He can beat offensive lineman from the point of attack or chase you down with relentless backside pursuit. Watt once again impressed in the stat sheet with 6 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss, and 3 quarterback hits.
James Conner
As always, it’s a small sample size for Conner. However, on just 3 carries (two of which came against heavy boxes at the end of the game), Conner carved out 6.3 yards per carry with shifty feet and a churning leg drive. The Steelers have one of the best backs in the league with Le’Veon Bell, but fans will be anxious to watch Conner’s role on offense grow.
Losers
Todd Haley
Haley’s game plan is pretty solid about 90 percent of the time, but some of his decisions leave you scratching your head. For instance, on a 4th and 1, the Steelers run Terrell Watson. Not All-Pro running back Le’Veon Bell, or 3rd round pick James Conner – Terrell Watson. On a 3rd and 1 later in the game, the Steelers elected to go with a long-developing out-and-up route to Antonio Brown instead of throwing a slant or running the ball.
In addition, Haley still hasn’t found a way for Martavis Bryant to get the ball. There are a lot of mouths to feed on the Steelers offense, and a lot of questionable choices being made by Todd Haley and the coaching staff.
Chris Hubbard
Hubbard had a bit of a rough game going up against Carlos Dunlap. As Marcus Gilbert missed time once again with a hamstring injury, Hubbard was forced into action. The Steelers could do far worse as far as swing tackles are concerned, but this was a rough outing for Chris Hubbard.
Martavis Bryant
It’s hard to call Martavis Bryant a “loser” based on what he was able to do on the field. The guy simply isn’t getting involved in the offense with just 2 and 3 targets in his last two games, respectively. However, I categorize Bryant as a “loser” when it comes to complaining about targets on social media.
I can certainly understand the frustration coming from Bryant – he is a dynamic, play-making receiver who hasn’t been given much of an opportunity this year. However, his approach to wanting more balls is unacceptable. Bryant needs to resolve his issues behind closed doors, rather than taking them to Twitter or Instagram.
