The Pittsburgh Steelers suffered,a crushing lost to the Baltimore Ravens 26-6. From missed opportunities to questionable calls nothing seen to go right with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Coaching: During the course of game it was clear the game plan was off. The defensive strategy to stop the run failed miserably. The offensive did not commit to the running game that was ok. The passing game left much to be desired. The special teams did nothing special in returns and changing the course of the game. Coaching Grade F
Offense: Ben Roethlisberger 30 game streak with at least one touchdown came to a end. There was no receiver who had over 100 yards. Also there was no runner who rushed for over 100 yards. Offensive line struggled against the Baltimore front seven. Le’Von Bell did not receive enough touches in the game neither did running back LeGarrette Blount. Over the last six quarters the offense play calling and execution has been below average Offense Grade F
Defense: The score doesn’t fully indicate how the defense played. No forced turnovers,no sacks will not cut it. Held Joe Flacco to under 200 yards passing. Allowed Benard Pierce to rush for 96 yards on 22 carries. The defensive line struggled once again. Allowed two touchdowns to the same player in tight end Owen Daniels. Kept both starting wide recievers under 100 yards receiving. Positive was a couple of goal line stands.
Special Teams: The presence of Dri Archer was missed. Antonio Brown didn’t have any big returns. Defensive return team did a decent job against not allowing any big returns. Punter Brad Wing had another solid outing.
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Kristen Noelle
September 12, 2014 at 1:43 pm
Our team is falling apart. Completely pitiful performance. Thank God for the goal line stops that otherwise would have made for a much more embarrassing score. This is bad and it’s past the point of being just “not their night.”
Dave B.
September 12, 2014 at 6:45 pm
Totally agree . Its gonna be a long season .
DrGeorge
September 13, 2014 at 6:51 pm
Kristen, you are quite right — this headline does not really reflect the content of the article.
Ed Bouchette in his latest article for the Post-Gazette has finally come to the same conclusion I offered here a few weeks ago: “Maybe they just do not have the talent, especially on defense.” Considering that Ben R. and the offense have not scored a TD in six quarters, it’s beginning to look like they may not have the talent on offense, either.
As numerous fans have noted, the Steelers did not draft well between 2209 (Ziggy Hood, Kraig Urbik) through 2012 (Mike Adams, Rainey,Ta’amu) and the lack of contribution from high draft picks in those classes (DeCastro, Hayward, and Pouncey being notable exceptions) has come home to roost. Due to salary cap issues caused by huge contracts to key players (especially Ben R.), the team was unable to pick up free agents to offset the draft class disappointments. However, the last two draft classes have been pretty good in terms of production, and we do have a nucleus of players for a better team in the future. The players seem to be properly motivated, and their errors in execution can be fixed through rigorous discipline.
If we draft or recruit well in the next two years, we can fix the current problems, but we are going to be facing aging or retirement decisions on Polamolu, H. Miller, Keisel, Gradkowski, and Ben R. next year or the year after. That’s a lot of key talent to replace in a short time, considering that we have not drafted replacements for the key members of the last Super Bowl team (Hampton, A. Smith, Farrier, Woodley, Hines Ward, et al.) in the last three years. I write this not to be negative about the team, but to point out the obvious: it isn’t going to be a quick fix. It may take the Steelers another two or three years to get back to playoff strength, even if we draft and recruit well. Until then, the coaches face the unenviable task of getting a mediocre team to play above its talent level. So far, that isn’t happening.