Steelers “Grown A** Man” award winners for Week 6 at Cincinnati
Originating from the Steel City Underground Steelers Podcast, each week the hosts of the show (Joe and Brian) make their picks for those Pittsburgh Steelers who stood above and beyond ordinary NFL players as they handout their “Grown Ass Man” awards.
A few years ago, Joe Kuzma and I began describing any mention of Cam Heyward with the following phrase:
Cam Heyward is a… Grown. Ass. Man.
This season, it’s been noted that Cam is not the only Grown-Ass-Man on the field for the Steelers. In fact, week in and week out we’ve been noticing guys who have given it their all, and earned the status of “Grown-Ass-Man”.
We thought it might be fun to go ahead and formalize this thing, and as a result we present to you the first edition of a new series we are going to call… (wait for it) …
The GAM awards. (As in Grown Ass Man, but so we don’t always have to say the one word!)
Here are the picks for Week 6’s award with a win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Vance McDonald
7 receptions, 68 yards, 9.7 average
Joe is calling him Vance “Mack Truck” McDonald, which in and of itself might be enough to earn GAM honors, but Vance gets the nod for his terrific drive and power with his run after the catch. Want a prime example, the run where he just shrugs his shoulders and sends one Vontaze Burfict flying (all the way to the sidelines to pout). Vance McDonald is a Grown-Ass-Man!
James Conner
19 carries, 111 yards, 2 TDs, 5 receptions 26 yards
Power. That’s what you think of when you watch James Conner run. Power. He had several solid runs, and is a catalyst for the offense – one run in particular he shrugged off tackles by Williams and Vontaze Burfict (who lowered his head and tried to line up a head shot on Conner). As if that wasn’t enough, Conner has also improved dramatically in his blitz pick-up. James Conner is a Grown-Ass-Man!
Offensive Line
All you need to know about how well the offensive line played is this:
0 sacks, 2 QB hits, 2 tackles for loss.
That’s all the Bengals managed. The Bengals have a very good defensive line. Geno Atkins was tied for the league lead in sacks, and the rest of that group have been playing extremely well. They opened up holes for James Conner, and gave Ben time to survey the field. The Offensive Line are all Grown-Ass-Men!
Honorable Mentions
Ben Roethlisberger was considered, as was JuJu Smith-Schuster. Ben actually got the nod in the podcast because I spaced on the O-line, but I’m making up for it here. Juju was also considered, and really could have earned it with that great catch he made in the second quarter; however, he also short armed a beautiful pass from Ben down the sidelines earlier in the game that made me pull back.
Tell us what you think? Who do you believe should have been given a “Grown Ass Man” award?
