Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Bruce Gradkowski played well against the Philadelphia Eagles, while the overall team effort was not very good. After not being very consistent the first few games of the 2014 NFL preseason, Gradkowski showed improvement. Gradkowski is the Steelers Gab Player of the Week.
Going into training camp there was a feeling that Gradkowski would be in competition with teammate and fellow quarterback Landry Jones for the top backup spot behind Ben Roethlisberger. Against the Eagles, Gradkowski completed 8 of 11 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns. With his progress and Jones’ struggles, it’s clear Gradkowski is without a doubt the top backup quarterback for the Steelers.
Gradkowski showed the ability to connect on the deep balls as well as an ability to be accurate in the red zone. When Gradkowski entered the game in the third quarter, the offensive rhythm was flat. He entered the game and commanded an offense with unproven offensive linemen and wide receivers he has not played a lot of reps with.
Gradkowski has had his minor struggles in the preseason so far. Before the Philadelphia Eagles game Gradkowski had not lead the Steelers offense to any touchdown drives. Gradkowski has always showed multiple skills such as mobility and deceptive arm strength. With Gradkowski playing so well he likely will not play much next Thursday against the Carolina Panthers, possibly not playing at all.
Bruce Gradkowski’s performance should put Pittsburgh Steelers fan’s minds at ease in case Ben Roethlisberger is injured in a game.
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DrGeorge
August 26, 2014 at 8:54 pm
Actually, Gradkowski is even better than he showed against the Eagles. He simply doesn’t get enough playing time with the first unit to show the full range of his abilities. Even so, this offense is built around the talents of Ben R. If Gradkowski is ever forced to play for an injured Ben, the offensive game plan will have to be modified to suit his unique abilities. If Ben and Grad both go down and Landry must start, our offense may resemble Woody Hayes’s Buckeye teams — three yards and a cloud of dust. Not a happy thought with the present state of our defense in mind.