What a game today in Pittsburgh. Living up to the billing of past Ravens-Steelers games this game was close, tough, and physical. Football fans got a Christmas Day treat with this one, capped off by a thrilling comeback for the AFC North title. What a game. Here are the positional grades for the Pittsburgh Steelers:
Pittsburgh Steelers Postgame Positional Grades: Week 16
Quarterback: B-
Before the fourth quarter, I was fully prepared to give Ben Roethlisberger a D, but the fourth quarter comeback happened and Ben did Ben things. Roethlisberger finished the game 24/33 for 279 and three touchdowns. He doesn’t get any higher than this because he also had 2 ugly interceptions, but nonetheless, he gets a respectable grade because he made good throws when it counted and he came up big when he had to.
Running Back- A
Le’Veon Bell is a bad, bad man. He was challenged with this Ravens defense being stingy enough to only allow 82.1 yards rushing per game. What does he do? Oh, he just rushes for 122 yards and a score. He also added a score through the air. His final stat line was 20 rushes for 122 yards and one touchdown. He also added three receptions for 15 yards and another score. Bell time and time again has proven his value to this team, but no more than today.
Wide Receiver- B+
Everyone and their mother saw Antonio Brown’s play to win the Steelers the game, and everyone knows what he can do. At halftime, he and his fellow receivers were invisible. By the end of the game Antonio Brown finished with a line of 10 catches for 96 yards and the game-winning score, Eli Rogers had four catches for 84 yards, DeMarcus Ayers had only one catch for nine yards, but he drew a crucial penalty that set up a touchdown, and Cobi Hamilton had only one catch for six yards. Final stat line for the receivers was 16 catches for 195 yards and a touchdown catch. This group proved its worth in crunch time making clutch catches, again and again, to move the ball down the field, and of course, a receiver with the game-winning score helps this grade as well.
Tight End- B+
This group finished the game with five receptions for 69 yards and the first touchdown of the game. Although, with a modest stat line, they proved their worth with how well they blocked. Xavier Grimble, Jesse James, and David Johnson were crucial to helping Le’Veon Bell run all over the defense and help keep Big Ben upright. The tight end position is essentially a large receiver that blocks, and boy oh boy did they block well today, and that receiving touchdown helped, too.
Offensive Line- A+
This group played exceptionally well today. The Ravens defense had 30 sacks on the season coming into the game, and leaving the game. Keeping the quarterback upright and giving him time to find open receivers is something a good line does, but they also run blocked very well too. Le’Veon Bell does not rush for 122 yards without this group of players. Another important factor: discipline. No penalties on this group which is out of the norm for these Ravens-Steelers games.
Defensive Line- B-
The defensive line held down the fort with Stephon Tuitt sidelined. They got pressure on Joe Flacco and got off blocks well. They did, however, allow some long runs and allowed the Ravens to rush for 122 yards as a team. They also allowed Kyle Juszcyk through the line where he would then score. This group played well enough, though, to help the team win.
Line Backer- B-
Another up and down group here. They got pressure and penetration in the run game, but they also missed tackles. They played well enough to not lose the game, but they need to go back to the basics of fundamental tackling because this game could have been very different if there were better tackling.
Defensive Backs- C+
Here we are, back to the stigma of the Steelers secondary being a weakness, and today they didn’t help their cause. They started off a game marred with missed tackles by allowing Steve Smith Sr. to catch a short pass and turn it into a 44-yard game. They also allowed him to catch a touchdown on a later drive. This is a group that had many, many opportunities to tackle receivers behind the first down marker, but they missed tackles all game. Another group that needs to learn how to tackle again.
Special Teams- C
Overall I believe that this group played better than their grade. The punting game was above average again for Jordan Berry with an average of 45.7 yards on 3 punts while Baltimore only returned two punts for 25 yards with a long of 14, a complement of the punt return coverage.
The kicking game was also good, as Chris Boswell went 4/4 on extra point attempts, and connected on his only field goal attempt on the day. Also worth noting is that the returners had three returns for 59 yards, but most of the kickoffs from Justin Tucker were short so the returns gave the offense good starting field position. The reason for this low grade is that two kickoffs went out of bounds, setting up the Ravens with excellent field position on the 40-yard line twice. Two kickoffs out of bounds are unacceptable and uncharacteristic of Chris Boswell, and it is something he should work on for next week.
This game was a true treat for football fans and a great Christmas present for Steelers fans. By far not the best team performance, but they did what they needed to win. Come playoff time, these types of wins and a team’s abilities to claw out tough wins is what separates the good teams from great ones, and is the most dangerous aspects. Resolve is something you can’t coach, and today the Steelers proved to have a higher one than the Ravens, earning them the win.
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