What happens if Antonio Brown isn’t as productive this week?
Admittedly, this isn’t a departure from my weekly weakest link feature. Since I kept getting roasted by passersby who were only commenting on the headline and didn’t understand the concept of this column: to pick a single player whom a Steelers win or loss greatly depends on.
Therefore, this is still a weak link feature, despite the namesake who is going to follow, because this player has been anything but a weak link during the 2017 season: Antonio Brown.
Why on Earth would I pick AB this week?
Well, the thought process is as follows. The Steelers have relied on Brown so much over the last two games, that you have to believe that even a player capable of making the unbelievable seem commonplace might slow down at some point.
The Bengals have always had a secondary with a high pedigree, and entering Monday night’s game it won’t be any different, as Dre Kirkpatrick highlights one of several top-flight defenders who may cover Brown. It’s hard to imagine the Steelers receiving keeping up with his previous two games where he caught 20 passes for 313 yards and 5 touchdowns.
The Bengals are capable of and will be hell-bent on slowing down Brown, who previously didn’t have the biggest career days against Cincinnati. AB had four catches for 65 yards and a TD back in Week 7 of this season, but outside of the Wild Card playoff game from two seasons ago (where Brown caught 7 passes for 119 yards and no scores) he hasn’t had a 100-yard receiving game against the Bengals since 2014: and that season he had two of them, which happen to be his only two against the division foe in his entire career (15 games).
Despite the superhuman feats we’ve witnessed Antonio accomplish over the years, he became my pick this week because we expect so much of him. I wonder if the Steelers expect as much and what the reaction might be like if he isn’t capable of putting up video game stats as he’s done several times this season? Could we be in store for another Chris Boswell field goal fiesta as a result of the Steelers offense stalling short of the goal line?
When others have fallen short it appears Ben Roethlisberger leans toward his favorite target in the passing game. This isn’t to say the Bengals aren’t beatable but by both statistics and the human eyeball test, their 5th ranked pass defense could limit Brown’s impact.
Pro Football Reference even projects Brown’s stats to be along the low-end Monday, with 5.2 receptions, 74.1 yards, and 0.4 touchdowns.
Should Brown have an “off day” (again, said lightly for a player his caliber) will it be a weak link for the Steelers chances of winning? Or will he break through the Bengals barricade and burst onto the scene for a huge day, shattering any concept of weakness in his game?
Either is a possibility, but I feel that this week, all eyes will be on AB to have a monster contribution to keep the Steelers win streak alive.
