Pro Football Focus has graded the best and worst from the Pittsburgh Steelers’ second preseason game Saturday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The top five offensive grades concentrated on a trio of Steelers receivers. Defensively, the front seven received the highest marks. Here’s the site’s top 10 grades.
Pro Football Focus Grades vs. Buccaneers
1. EDGE Nick Herbig – 90.0
2. NT Keeanu Benton – 89.6
3. ILB Cole Holcomb – 89.1
4. CB D’Shawn Jamison – 85.8
5. CB Beanie Bishop Jr. – 85.3
6. S Miles Killebrew – 84.1
7. WR Scotty Miller – 81.9
8. DL Kyler Baugh – 79.9
9. DL Breiden Fehoko – 79.5
10. WR Roman Wilson – 76.4
Rookie wide receiver Roc Taylor finished 11th at 75.7.
Some of the snap sample sizes are small. Herbig played just three snaps before suffering a minor hamstring injury. He recorded a pressure on QB Teddy Bridgewater before exiting. Benton had a bat down as the Steelers played strong run defense, holding Buccaneers starting RB Bucky Irving to eight carries and 12 yards. Holcomb continues stringing together strong performances and is a lock to make the team as quality inside linebacker depth. Bishop didn’t start at slot corner but made plays in coverage and as a tackler. Jamison made up for a costly roughing-the-kicker penalty by forcing a fumble in the second half.
Offensively, Miller made two catches for 38 yards. Both of Wilson’s receptions went for chunk plays, gains of 30 and 42 yards. His preseason performances could give Pittsburgh confidence in him as a complement to DK Metcalf, especially with Calvin Austin III missing most of the summer with injury.
The worst defensive grade went to NT Daniel Ekuale, posting a lowly 30.3. Reserve CB Mikey Victor and ILB Mark Robinson also ranked near the bottom. QB Logan Woodside registered the worst offensive mark at 32.9. He completed just 4-of-9 passes for 45 yards and threw a critical interception that helped Tampa Bay kick a game-winning field goal as time expired. Rookie tackle Gareth Warren was close behind, penalized twice before leaving the game with a possible concussion. Following a strong debut, receiver Max Hurleman graded poorly after dropping a sure touchdown.
Running back Kaleb Johnson graded well in a better performance than he showed against Jacksonville last week. Despite his first sack, DL Derrick Harmon received only middling grades for a second-straight game. He was largely dinged for poor tackling.
