The Pittsburgh Steelers lost 20-10 Monday night to the Cincinnati Bengals and below is my list of winners and losers from the game. Feel free to add your own in the comments below.
Winners:
Ike Taylor – Taylor gets the biggest gold star of them all for his play Monday night as held Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green to just six catches for 41 yards on 14 targets. Sure, he may have missed a tackle or two, but he had the hardest job on defense and he did it well.
LaMarr Woodley – While he didn’t register a sack in the game, Woodley registered three total tackles and two hits on Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton.
Derek Moye – While one catch for one yard and a touchdown might not seem like much, Moye did exactly what he was asked to do and his size must now be respected inside the red zone moving forward. That one play will ensure that he is used in situations such as that moving forward.
Fernando Velasco – Velasco only had a week to learn the Steelers offense after being signed last Monday and he played well all things considered. There were a few miscommunications, but overall he filled in nicely at center. The Steelers were lucky that he was still unemployed after they lost Maurkice Pouncey for the season.
Cameron Heyward – While the Steelers former first-round draft pick didn’t register a tackle in the game, he provided pressure on Dalton throughout the game. He was credited with two batted down passes to go along with one quarterback hit.
Losers:
David Paulson – Paulson caught three balls for 49 yards but his fumble following a 34-yard catch was a huge turning point in the game. To make matters worse, Paulson continues to be a liability as a blocker in the run game.
Ryan Clark – Clark not only missed a few tackles in the game, he was also responsible for the big 61-yard gain by Bengals tight end Tyler Eifert as he bit on an a quarterback fake in cover-3 and left the middle of the field wide open for an easy pitch and catch.
Ben Roethlisberger – A 54% completion ratio is just not going to cut it and especially when more than a few of his passes were way off target. On the interception, he threw the ball behind Jerricho Cotchery, who had a few steps on two Bengals defenders.
Marcus Gilbert – Another poor showing in the pass protection department by Gilbert, who allowed several pressures during the game. It might be time to let Kelvin Beachum take a shot at right tackle.
