Steelers ditch style points on way to top of AFC South
The offence expected to light up scoreboards is instead grinding it out.
The way the Pittsburgh Steelers defence is playing, it hardly matters.
The team expected to compete for a Super Bowl berth looks the part at the season’s midway point. The Steelers just aren’t doing it the way most envisioned.
Rather than race up and down the field with an offence that features the highest-paid wide receiver and running back in the league, it’s the remade-onthe-fly defence has propelled Pittsburgh.
The proof came in a 20-15 victory over Detroit on Sunday night. And while Pittsburgh gave up 482 yards to Matthew Stafford and company, the Lions never reached the end zone. Not once.
Five times Detroit ventured inside the Steelers 20. The results? Three field goals and two failed attempts on fourth down.
“We gave up a lot of yards, but we definitely didn’t break when we needed to the most,’’ linebacker Ryan Shazier. “And then I feel like it really helped us grow a bit.’’
Pittsburgh (6-2) heads into its bye week firmly atop the AFC North after its third straight win. While the defence slipped from second to fourth in total yards after letting the Lions go up and down Ford Field, the Steelers are tied for second in points allowed. Heady territory for a unit that doesn’t have starter over 30.
“I know we had some mishaps, but I’m glad we’re 6-2,’’ defensive end Cameron Heyward said.
With considerable room for improvement, particularly the $92-million offence.
The unit that once — albeit not this season — said it wanted to make scoring 30 points the norm has struggled at times to reach 20.
Le’veon Bell’s slow start following his decision to skip training camp didn’t help. Neither has the enigmatic play of wide receiver Martavis Bryant, who spent Sunday night on the sideline in sweat pants after being deactivated by coach Mike Tomlin for making the ill-advised decision to vent his frustrations on social media .
Yet the Steelers have turned things around after a 30-9 mauling at home by Jacksonville, a loss that included a pair of pick-6s thrown by Ben Roethlisberger, who facetiously wondered if he still had “it.’’
Three straight victories have followed and while Roethlisberger is still searching for consistency — his completion rate (61.1 per cent) is his lowest since 2008 — he’s developed a rapport with rookie wide receiver Juju Smith-schuster, taking some of the pressure off All-pro Antonio Brown.
Smith-schuster had career highs in receptions (seven) and yards receiving (193) against the Lions, showcasing a burst even he wasn’t sure he had on a 97-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown in the third quarter that served as the longest pass play in the franchise’s 86-year history.