Martavis Bryant scores on a 27-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter (http://www.steelers.com/photos/)
PITTSBURGH -- In the first half Sunday, back-to-back touchdown celebrations involving receivers and an imaginary dice game signaled a much-anticipated explosion for the Pittsburgh Steelers' offense.
By the fourth quarter, Le'Veon Bell let out a long sigh after hitting a sea of purple for no gain, the sideline looked sluggish, and promising drives ended in field goals.
Not many expected the Steelers' rebuilt defense to outshine the other side of the ball through two games, but that's the reality during Pittsburgh's 2-0 start and a 26-9 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Grinding out wins isn't such a bad thing.
"We're not BCS-pointing it here," Ben Roethlisberger said. "We're 2-0. We did what we had to do."
To be sure, Sam Bradford's knee injury and inactive status played a factor. So did the Vikings' impressive pass rush, which gave Ben Roethlisberger little time to execute his signature evasive moves once the pocket collapsed.
But with the Steelers' playmakers, the standard is 30 points per game. That's their yearly goal, especially in Heinz Field, where the points are more plentiful. Instead, the offense has 40 total points heading into Week 3 against the Chicago Bears.
It's not that the offense is struggling, to be sure. Roethlisberger finished with 243 yards and two scores, but you might as well tack on an extra 70 on two drawn pass-interference penalties off deep-ball attempts.
It's just not thriving like it should -- or eventually will -- be. Failing to convert eight of their first 11 third downs won't be good enough. Emblematic of the day: The Steelers drove 64 yards late in the fourth quarter, missed on a rollout play, missed on an attempt to Eli Rogers over the middle and settled for Chris Boswell's 37-yard field goal.
At least no turnovers and fewer penalties is progress.
Asked how long he expects the Steelers' offense to be in wait-and-see mode, Roethlisberger said "hopefully it's done."
"You can say we’re not on the same page, not in sync, but I’ll give credit to that defense first," Roethlisberger said.
Martavis Bryant's welcome-back game also was definitely progress. His 91-yard performance on three catches flashed 2015 form, turning a routine slant route into a 27-yard touchdown in the first quarter thanks to his breakaway speed, which is still very much intact. "Open grass," said Bryant about the play.
Antonio Brown and Bryant going off at the same time will mean liftoff for this passing attack. In Week 1, Brown went wild for 182 yards while Bryant stayed quiet. Bryant came alive Sunday, but Brown needed a late fourth-quarter drive to eclipse the 50-yard mark.
The Steelers attempted several deep balls because the Vikings' safeties play closer to the line of scrimmage. Brown and Bryant each drew a hold on deep attempts. "DBs panic" when Bryant gets behind them, Roethlisberger said.
"Whoever is playing against us just has to pick their poison," Bryant said. "If they are double-teaming me, A.B., Eli [Rogers], JuJu [Smith-Schuster], we've always got guys on the field who can make plays and we've got a great quarterback."
The Steelers promised to feed Bell (27 carries, 87 yards), who did his best getting positive yards without major holes through which to burst. This was a hard day's work for Bell. The Vikings' front is very good. The Steelers' offensive line has been adequate but not quite the prolific group it was a year ago, at least not yet. Sometimes that process takes time. The Steelers' line was at its best on pulling plays Sunday, getting downfield in a hurry.
Bell was glad to get a healthy dose of carries but is still waiting to pop a long run. Bell's longest run Sunday was 11 yards, compared to 15 in Week 1.
"I'm due for an explosion play," Bell said. "It hasn't happen yet. I think I might have had three today but those guys made a couple of tackles."
Overall, the Steelers have to be pleased with a defense that's allowed just one passing touchdown through eight quarters. Consistent pressure with four primary rushers, coupled with the occasional timely linebacker or corner blitz, has prevented big gains for quarterbacks DeShone Kizer and Case Keenum, who was blitzed on one of his first 10 dropbacks.
The next three quarterbacks on the schedule: Mike Glennon, Joe Flacco and Blake Bortles. The true ability of this rebuilt defense won't show until the quality of opponent improves. But the start to the season couldn't be much better for this group. Young pass-rushers T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree have combined for three sacks in two games, while defensive end Cam Heyward looks to be in prime form.
The Steelers didn't know Bradford wouldn't play until Sunday morning. The Vikings' nine-point final is "too much," Heyward said.
"I want to see that goose egg every single time we're out there," Heyward said. "We just have to keep challenging ourselves."
No comments:
Post a Comment