Examining why the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) should not be too surprised if their franchise quarterback doesn’t light up the stat sheet on Sunday.
This expectation should probably go without saying, but Steeler Nation is notorious for having somewhat high standards of their players. So, with that in mind, let us pause to consider what is likely to happen when Ben Roethlisberger makes his much anticipated return to the field against the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals (6-0).
Rust
Obviously, this will be a concern for the Steelers offense. Being out of action for four games will probably factor in to Ben’s timing with his receivers. Antonio Brown, Martavis Bryant, Heath Miller, and the rest of the offensive weapons will have to adjust back to Roethlisberger as opposed to Michael Vick and Landry Jones. The tempo is not going to be as sharp as possible because 1), they only had one week of practice with Ben as a full participant and 2), #7 will probably be bit out of sync compared to earlier in the season.
Inconsistency
This not only concerns Ben himself, but the Steelers in general in his first action after missing at least one week due to injury or suspension. There have been games where the quarterback’s play is solid and the team rallies around him for a victory. This was the case in 2005 when, after returning from a knee injury, Roethlisberger was just 9-for-14 for 93 yards with two touchdowns and two interception. Pittsburgh rushed for 221 yards, the defense came up with two takeaways, and the end result was a 27-13 victory over . . . yup, the Bengals. Then there are games where Ben was on point but the rest of the team wasn’t. Such was the case in 2009 when the veteran completed 18 of 24 passes for 278 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, and Pittsburgh still lost on a last minute drive by the Oakland Raiders in a 27-24 upset victory. On the whole, the Steelers are 4-5 when Ben first returns to play after missing at least one week and the quarterback is 168-for-273 (61.5% completion percentage), 1,785 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
Final Thoughts
Steeler Nation is about to discover whether or not this team has what it takes to compete for a playoff spot in 2015. Hopefully the Steelers will be able to rally around Big Ben to a greater extent than what they were able to do for Jones last week. After dazzling against the Arizona Cardinals, the 3rd QB had a game worthy of most guys making their first NFL start, completing 16-of-29 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions in a 23-13 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last Sunday. The defense failed to come up with a takeaway and only sacked Alex Smith twice while the offense could have put the ball on the ground more often than it did. For more on that story, here’s a link to the fine folks at Behind the Steel Curtain.
The bottom line is this: the Bengals can be beaten. They have yet to face a team with a record above .500 this season. They’ve taken advantage of their soft schedule, but the Black and Gold can give them a reality check and get right back into the AFC playoff picture. They just need to take advantage of their opportunities.
Stats courtesy ESPN
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