5 to Watch: Steelers looking for 1st win in Tampa Bay
The Steelers are travelling to Tampa Bay this weekend to take on the Buccaneers. With all the drama surrounding the team, the Steelers are in serious need of a victory. While the Buccaneers are on a hot streak, the Steelers certainly have the talent to win this game.
Here are five players to watch this week as the Steelers try and get their first W of the 2018 season…
Antonio Brown
There are going to be a lot of eyes on Antonio Brown this week, for both good and bad reasons. Given all the recent drama surround the star wide receiver, he’s is going to be a major talking point.
Brown’s year hasn’t started off how anybody expected. While he hasn’t disappointed on the field necessarily, he has yet to lead the team in receiving yards. This may sound “spoiled” considering Brown had 9 receptions and 17 targets versus the Chiefs, but I am confident Brown is going to overcome all of the drama surrounding him soon enough and have a huge game. This week is the time for Brown to step up as a player and a leader.
Terrell Edmunds
A player who’s even more in need of a breakout performance is safety Terrell Edmunds, the Steelers 2018 first round pick. His most noteworthy play of the season so far has been his missed tackle last week that allowed Kareem Hunt to score a touchdown. While I’m aware he’s still developing, you want your first round pick to have some sort of impact on the field. This week I have a feeling he’ll have that impact.
Last week Travis Kelce repeatedly got open against Vince Williams and Jon Bostic. In order to not allow the middle of the field to be torched again, Edmunds should be used in dime formations and to cover tight ends. His talent is the Steelers best bet in filling the athletic void left by Ryan Shazier.
O.J. Howard
Speaking of tight ends, the Buccaneers have a good one in O.J. Howard. If you’re gonna call him anything, call him a playmaker. It’s what he did in college and it’s also what he did last week versus the Eagles when he took a catch for 75 yards and a touchdown.
Given that Kelce’s success versus the Steelers defense last week, you know the Buccaneers have a big plans for Howard this week. He’s certainly capable of using his size and speed to get open against this defense. With Howard, and even fellow tight end Cameron Brate, the Steelers are going to need to focus a lot on fixing their mistakes from last week.
Jordan Berry
Punters are people too, and Steelers punter Jordan Berry is going to have a lot of eyes on him this week. His performance in 2018 has been less than stellar to say the least – so far he’s rated dead last among NFL punters according to Pro Football Focus. He’s been so disappointing that the Steelers actually brought in new punters for try-outs this week.
That all being said, Berry is a player to watch because he’s punting for his job this week. We’ve all seen Berry nail some great punts; we know he’s capable of succeeding and playing in the league. However, if he continues this week to play like he has then the Steelers may be making a roster move on Tuesday.
Artie Burns
Considering last week’s poor performance, I could’ve picked almost any cornerback to write about here. However, I feel there will be a lot of pressure on Artie Burns this week. The Buccaneers have a lot of depth and talent at wide receiver that will test our secondary. I have confidence in Joe Haden in not getting smoked, but not so much Burns.
We saw Burns as a liability last week when he was lined up against Tyreek Hill in press man coverage, only to be beaten and allow a touchdown. Was that play solely on Burns, or a communication breakdown? Hard to say, but regardless it was a very poor rep for him. Burns can’t allow that type of mistake to happen this week, especially when he’s facing the giant Mike Evans or the speedy DeSean Jackson.
Leave a comment below and let us know what players you’ll be watching on Monday!
