Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery hasn\’t played many snaps on offense so far this season, but he is always ready when his number is called, and such was the case in the Sunday win over the New York Giants.
After Antonio Brown left the game early with a sprained left ankle, Cotchery was the next man up and he did not disappoint. The veteran hauled in all four passes thrown his way for 50 yards and 3 first downs.
Cotchery also showed that he can also still help out the running game as he executed a few solid blocks at the second level to help free running back Isaac Redman on a few of his long runs.
Solid run blocking is nothing new for Cotchery and we saw it on display just last week on the long run by Chris Rainey against the Washington Redskins off of the direct snap.
The veteran wide receiver played 42 snaps on Sunday with Brown sidelined and that now gives him just over 100 offensive snaps on the season. 5 of his 8 catches this season have moved the chains and he has caught all but 2 passes thrown in his direction.
Depending on the health of Brown this next week, Cotchery could see extended action once again in the Monday night game against the Kansas City Chiefs, a team that he reportedly visited with this past offseason late in the free agency period.
Cotchery ultimately returned to Pittsburgh on a two-year deal and it looks like his signing was once again great insurance. The veteran is well respected in the locker room and very good at handling the media to boot.
Whenever Brown is healed, Cotchery will return to his usual handful of snaps a game, but it is good to know that he can come off of the bench at a moments notice and deliver in clutch situations.
