Let’s. Get. Weird.
– As we always try to do, let’s start with the score. The Pittsburgh Steelers won 30-9, only the 7th 30-9 game in NFL history. The Steelers have been involved in three of those outcomes, winning each time. They beat the St. Louis Cardinals in 1966 and the Cincinnati Bengals in 1986. Pretty zany.
– Martavis Bryant and Antonio Brown became the first pair of Steelers to have 130+ yards and a touchdown since Plaxico Burress and Hines Ward in 2002. That was the day Burress broke the team’s single-game receiving yards record, which Brown shattered last week.
– Ben Roethlisberger has now thrown for 370+ yards 13 times in his career. But never has he done it only so few completions. Took just 22 today. Previous low was 23 in 2009…also against the Cleveland Browns.
– After today, the Steelers are only converting 34.7% of their third downs (43/124). That is the worst mark since at least 2002, as far back as ESPN records data. Remember this was a third down offense who ranked 5th last year. Of course, the injuries – especially at QB – has been a big issue but not the only one. And it’s still mighty frustrating.
– Markus Wheaton had his most receiving yards in a game (18) since Week Five.
– Cody Wallace has been penalized seven times in 2015, which still leads the team.
– Roosevelt Nix might have just his first pass today. Ever. First in the NFL, first in college. He was a DT at high school and there’s no record or mention of him ever catching the ball. You go Rosie!
– The Steelers’ defense held the Browns’ rushing attack to just 15 yards today. It’s the fewest rushing yards allowed since December 23rd, 2012, when the Bengals gained only 14 yards. But the Bengals won that game.
The last time the Steelers allowed 15 or fewer rushing yards and won? You’d have to look back to 2004 when the New England Patriots ran the ball six times for 5 yards in a 34-20 loss. Roethlisberger’s rookie season. And he came off the bench today. Sort of like a rookie. Symmetry.
– Stephon Tuitt and Cam Heyward are on pace for at least five sacks this season and easily more. Tuitt with 4.5, Heyward with four. If they both can crack that mark, it’d be the first time two Steelers’ DL did so in the same year since Rodney Bailey and Aaron Smith in 2002. Tuitt would also become just the sixth DL since the turn of the century to have 5+ sacks. He joins Heyward, Bailey, Smith, Brett Keisel, and Kimo Von Oelhoffen.
– One random, meaningless stat today. Roethlisberger was by Jordan Poyer today. Poyer is the 108th different player to pick Big Ben off in his career.
Who has picked him off the most? The Bengals’ Reggie Nelson with five.
