A Steelers Depot daily segment. A quick hit of some Pittsburgh Steelers and Steelers-related stories that may not require a complete and dedicated article but nuggets worth mentioning and passing on to you guys. The same as our recent Depot Daily, but now late at night to better capture the news of the day.
Your Depot After Dark for Dec. 8.
Big Ben Attends
Ben Roethlisberger attended his first Steelers game of the 2023 season Thursday night against the New England Patriots. By game’s end, many in the crowd were probably hoping he could sub in.
Prior to kickoff, Roethlisberger shared this photo of him and children at Acrisure Stadium.
We’ll see if Roethlisberger releases a podcast this upcoming week to recap the loss and give his thoughts on the state of the Steelers.
Pickens Target Tree
One more nugget from the Patriots loss. As shared by Dave Bryan, WR George Pickens’ target tree looked…bleak. He finished the game with five catches for 19 yards, the worst output by a Steelers’ wide receiver in history with at least five grabs. But it’s hard to blame him considering the short and shallow routes he ran throughout the game, mainly targeted on curls against off coverage.
Panthers Elevate Wormley
Former Pittsburgh Steelers DL Chris Wormley appears on track to play in his first NFL game since tearing his ACL last year. According to reporter Darin Gantt, Wormley is being elevated from the Carolina Panthers’ practice squad as injury replacement for DL DeShawn Williams.
Wormley signed to the Panthers’ practice squad in September. He was injured against the Baltimore Ravens last December, giving him about a one-year turnaround from tearing up his knee to playing again.
Matt Spaeth’s Ravens Story
Also ahead of Thursday’s game, former Steelers TE Matt Spaeth served as one of the team’s guests. Interviewed by fellow ex-Steeler Arthur Moats inside Acriusre, Spaeth reflected on his Steelers’ career. He told this great story of the Steelers/Ravens rivalry and how Baltimore tried to take away the advantage Pittsburgh had of two excellent blocking tight ends in Spaeth and Heath Miller. And how a Baltimore buddy clued him in on the Ravens’ gameplan the night before.
“There was one game, one year where we played in Baltimore,” Spaeth told Moats. “First game against Baltimore, we ran the ball well, everything went good. Heath and I would run two tight ends, they’d run right behind us and it went well…going into our home game late in the season, I actually had a buddy who played for Baltimore. We went to college together. We went out to eat together the night before.
“He said to me, Matt, you better be ready tomorrow. And Iwas like, yeah, I know, it’s Baltimore, you gotta be ready. He’s like, I mean it, you better be ready. I’m like, what are you talking about? He’s like, anytime you guys are in two tight ends, Haloti Ngata is lining up right over you. And his job is to blow you up.”
Though he never mentioned the year, it appears Spaeth is talking about the 2009 season. After running for 153 yards in Baltimore earlier in the year, the Ravens came to town in Week 16. And you can see what Spaeth is talking about. On this play, for example, Ngata aligns between Sapeth and Miller, blowing by Spaeth, knocking back RB Rashard Mendenhall, and sacking Ben Roethlisberger.
Pittsburgh’s running game was shut down, rushing for 48 yards on 23 attempts, but the Steelers found a way to win a classic close game against the Ravens. K Jeff Reed hit a 38-yard field goal with five minutes to play to give Pittsburgh a 23-20 lead which would prove to be the game’s final score. Forcing three Ravens turnovers were key in the win.
Listen to the whole interview below.
