Big Ben passes Elway, now seventh on career passing list

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is averaging more than 400 yards passing in his past three games at Heinz Field, but it has not translated into any victories.

Roethlisberger, coming off a five-interception game against Cleveland, threw for 452 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions Sunday in a 42-37 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. He threw for 469 in the AFC divisionalround playoff game against Jacksonville and 281 yards in the 27-24 loss to the Patriots in December. He did not play against the Browns in the 2017 regular-season finale at Heinz Field.

The 469-yard and 452-yard performances happened in part because the Steelers fell behind so quickly in both games. They were behind by 21 points at the end of the first quarter Sunday.

“We had to start scoring points,” Roethlisberger said. “When you get in a hole like that, you have to find ways to score and you’ve got to score quick. It makes you run the no-huddle and it makes you throw the ball every play pretty much.”

It was not lost on Roethlisberger that he has been in situations quite a bit in recent games.

“Sometimes you have to play catch-up, you have to play up to the other team’s offense, whatever it may be,” Roethlisberger said. “If they are throwing it around every single play and scoring quickly then you have to find ways to score points. We just have to be prepared for whatever style of offense we need to play.”

Roethlisberger moved past Hall of Famer John Elway and into seventh place on the NFL’s all-time passing list with 51,852 yards. His 60 passing attempts were the secondmost of his career, his 39 completions were the fourth-most and the 452 yards were his sixth-most in a single game.

Roethlisberger is the only quarterback in NFL history with five 450-yard passing games. Dan Marino had four 450-yard passing games in his Hall of Fame career.

More drama

Wide receiver Antonio Brown is usually the last Steelers player to leave the locker room after game. He was the first Steelers starter to leave Sunday before any reporters entered.

Brown might have known questions were coming about his sideline confrontation with new offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner. CBS cameras caught Brown yelling at Fichtner in the game.

For the second consecutive game, JuJu SmithSchuster was the Steelers leading receiver. He had 13 receptions on 19 targets for 121 yards and a touchdown.

Brown had nine receptions on 17 targets for 67 yards.

Roethlisberger was asked after the game if there is anything wrong with their chemistry.

“I don’t think so,” Roethlisberger said. “Defenses are doing a good job of trying to take him away by doubling and putting extra people on him. So other guys are stepping up. Jesse James, JuJu, obviously, are doing great things. I thought [Ryan Switzer] did a good job. I thought James Washington was making plays. So I thought other guys stepped up and did some good things today.”

Special teams not special

The Steelers had a chance to seize momentum after Artie Burns tackled Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt in the end zone for a safety with 12:02 remaining in the game. And it looked as if they might be well on their way to doing that when Brown caught the free kick by the Chiefs punter Dustin Colquitt and returned it to near midfield.

The play did not count, however. Backup running back Stevan Ridley was penalized for aligning improperly on the return. Ridley ran onto the field late and did not appear to know where to line up. His teammates were pointing for him to move, but Colquitt punted the ball before he could get there.

“I have to be better,” Ridley said after the game.

The penalty was costly because on the re-kick Switzer returned it to the 30, and the Steelers lost 17 yards in field position. They punted a few minutes later.

Tomlin has been disappointed in all phases of the special teams. Chris Boswell missed a field goal and an extra point and punter Jordan Berry was inconsistent.

“We’re not playing well in the kicking game,” Tomlin said. “We’ve missed a couple of kicks here in recent weeks. We are not punting with varsity-like consistency.”

This ‘n’ that

Brown reached the 750catch milestone for his career. … Smith-Schuster set a career high with 13 receptions. He had his fifth 100yard receiving game of his career and his second consecutive to start the season. … Rookie receiver Washington’s first NFL catch was a 14yard touchdown. … Tight end James finished with a game-high 138 receiving yards, setting his career high. … Daniel McCullers recorded his first sack of the season.

Inactives

The Steelers deactivated offensive linemen David DeCastro and Zach Banner, cornerback Joe Haden, defensive lineman Tyson Alualu, quarterback Mason Rudolph, safety Marcus Allen and receiver Justin Hunter.

The Chiefs deactivated safety Eric Berry, corner Charvarious Ward, running back Darrel Williams, linebacker Ben Niemann, defensive lineman Justin Hamilton and offensive linemen Austin Reiter and Khalil McKenzie.