Big Ben isn’t sweating his mediocre start
If Ben Roethlisberger was younger, he’d be worried about a lot of things right now. He’d be concerned that rookie Deshaun Watson has a better quarterback rating than he does. He’d be concerned that Blake Bortles has more touchdown passes and that Jared Goff has thrown for more yards.
But with 13 years of experience and the wisdom that comes with being a 35-yearold quarterback, Roethlisberger isn’t sweating how any of that looks.
After the first month of the season, Roethlisberger isn’t close to being among the league’s leading statistical quarterbacks. He is the 14th-rated passer, 13th in passing yards and 21st in completion percentage.
It’s not that those numbers are lost on Roethlisberger. He admitted again Wednesday morning he has to play better. But he’s not fretting over it. Instead, he’s embracing the fact that he has done things to help the Steelers get to 3-1 and atop the AFC North at the quarter-pole of the season.
“Winning has always been my No. 1 priority,” Roethlisberger said. “I said that from the first day I walked in front of you guys. That’s always No. 1 for me. As a younger guy, you worry if your stats are helping us win or lose. Everyone in this business wants to put up good numbers. But as you get older you appreciate how you can win football games without just putting up good numbers.”
It’s not that unusual for Roethlisberger to get off to a slow start. It’s happened before, most recently in 2014. He had just six touchdown passes in the first four games of that season as the Steelers started 2-2.
By the time the 2014 season ended, the Steelers had the most explosive offense in the NFL and Roethlisberger tied his career high with 32 touchdown passes.
Through four games this season, Roethlisberger is completing 62.7 percent of his passes for 239 yards per game and has thrown for just six touchdowns.
Roethlisberger believes he is close to getting back to his usual form.
“I’d like to think so,” he said. “Rhythm is within yourself and it’s also within the context of an offense and other guys. There are 10 other guys on the field you have to be in a rhythm with. If we can just win football games now, then you play your best football later in the season.”
It might not be easy against this week’s opponent, the Jacksonville Jaguars. They have the league’s top pass defense and the most sacks with 18.
“They have a million and a half sacks, forced fumbles,” Roethlisberger said. “They pay a lot of money to their secondary. They lock people down. We’re not sure what we’re going to do. It’s that good of a defense. Luckily, we’re not playing today or tomorrow. We have some time to get in the film room and try to figure some things out. This will be a very good test for us.”
Jacksonville is better than it has been in previous years, but Roethlisberger was laying it on a bit thick. The Jaguars are dead last in the league in rush defense, allowing 165.5 yards per game.
The Jaguars, however, do have one of the best pass defense teams in the league. They lead the NFL in sacks with 18, and the Steelers are second with 15.
Perhaps not coincidentally, they’re No. 1 and No. 2 in passing yards allowed. The Jaguars are allowing just 147 passing yards per game while the Steelers are allowing 154 per game.
Bell takes a rest
Mike Tomlin might run Le’Veon Bell’s wheels off on occasion in games, but he’s not overworking his star running back in practice.
Three days after Bell touched the ball 39 times — 35 rushes and four receptions — Tomlin gave Bell an easy day Wednesday while James Conner and Terrell Watson took most of the reps in a practice in pads.
“The coach did a good job of protecting me from myself, really taking some reps off of me,” Bell said.
“But I feel good. I can’t complain. I’m ready to go out there.”
Dupree gets full sack
Elias Sports Bureau, which oversees statistics for the NFL, awarded outside linebacker Bud Dupree with a full sack of Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco in the fourth quarter. Defensive end Stephon Tuitt had been given a half sack by statisticians in Baltimore.
Practice report
Right tackle Marcus Gilbert and safety Mike Mitchell, both of whom missed the Ravens game with hamstring injuries, went through a full practice Wednesday. Linebacker Bud Dupree (shoulder), tight end Jesse James (shoulder) and linebacker Ryan Shazier (shoulder) all were limited.