Up-and-down Pittsburgh wary of 2-7 Titans
Steelers have stumbled vs. lesser foes
So much has gone right for the Pittsburgh Steelers this season with Ben Roethlisberger throwing more.
The Steelers would have an even better record if not for stumbles against some of the league’s worst teams.
Pittsburgh is responsible for Tampa Bay’s lone win in nine games, and the Steelers allowed the Jets to snap their eight-game skid last week, losing 20-13 in New York.
Now the Steelers visit the struggling Tennessee Titans (27) tonight, hoping to head into their bye with a win.
Pittsburgh wide receiver Antonio Brown says the losses definitely have been hard. If not for those two losses, the Steelers (64) would be atop the AFC North rather than tied with Baltimore.
“We can’t relax,” Brown said. “We’ve got to be on the skills of our game week in and week out, because we know we’re going to get our opponent’s best shot.”
Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin blamed the loss to the Jets on four turnovers.
“Realistically, you look back at it with 20/20 vision to lose a game by seven with that minus4, we’re lucky it wasn’t worse than that,” Tomlin said. “We’ve got to do a better job of taking care of the football, and we’ve got to get the football.”
Tennessee has won the past two against the Steelers, including the 2013 season opener 16-9 in Pittsburgh with Mike Munchak as the Titans’ coach.
Now Munchak is coaching the Steelers’ offensive line after being fired last January. Ken Whisenhunt is in his first season in Tennessee, where he has lost seven of eight games.
Whisenhunt has a strongarmed rookie quarterback in
Zach Mettenberger, who will start his third game tonight. Mettenberger is one of eight selections in the past two drafts in the Titans’ starting lineup as Tennessee comes off a 21-7 loss at Baltimore.
“I think right now they’re excited about the chance to play on ‘Monday Night Football,’ ” Whisenhunt said. “I mean what do we have to lose? We go out and play well, it’s a great thing for us.”
Familiar foes: Whisenhunt was Roethlisberger’s first offensive coordinator in the NFL. The Steelers quarterback said they butted heads then but have had a good relationship the past six or seven years.
“We text and keep in contact throughout the seasons,” Roethlisberger said. “It will be special to go against him again.”
Motivation: Titans players say they have seen a difference from their coaches that this game might mean a bit more with Pittsburgh the opponent. The Titans have lost seven of eight, so winning a game, any game, matters most.
“Without a doubt,” Titans cornerback Jason McCourty said. “We’ve gone a while now without getting one. Why not Monday night, prime time, everybody watching?”
Berger battle: This game features two big quarterbacks wearing the No. 7 and whose names end in “berger.” Mettenberger wound up with that number because someone else had the No. 8 he wore at LSU. Mettenberger has thrown for 495 yards with three touchdowns in two starts. Roethlisberger has been on a roll this season and already has surpassed 3,000 yards (3,063) passing with 23 TDs and only five interceptions.
They also combine for 26 letters in their last names.
“So that’s a pretty big deal,” Mettenberger said. “I think that’s a record on its own. I am very excited to go against Ben. He’s a great quarterback and a guy I have looked up to for the last couple of years.”