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It’s been a rollercoaster of a season so far for the Pittsburgh Steelers. After an exhilarating Week 1 win against the Buffalo Bills, to three straight losses, and now three straight wins. The latest of those three came Sunday against division rival Cleveland Browns.
Coming into this season, the offensive line was the biggest question mark. After four games and the team sitting at 1-3, the fears around the young unproven group seemed all but confirmed, and the media was letting them have it. Their backs were against the wall, and they were challenged by their coaches and the pressure surrounding them to be better. To say they answered would be an understatement.
Over the first four games, Ben Roethlisberger was sacked 10 times, and seemed to rarely have time to throw. When he did, he often ended up on the ground. Over the last three games, they’ve cut that number down to 4. The rushing attack has dramatically increased as well. Through the first four weeks, they amassed 221 total yards rushing, and over the last three games, they’ve accumulated 381. The team’s commitment to the run has gotten back on track, and it was on display in Cleveland.
This group still has a long way to go, but to not notice their dramatic improvement would be ignorant. They’ve clearly watched the tape and worked hard to clean up the mistakes and improve from week to week. After Sunday’s win in the post game presser, Roethlisberger commended the group. He had this to say about them:
That’s big praise for the group that was supposed to be this team’s downfall. The young group is really stepping up when the team needs them most. Roethlisberger noted rookie left tackle Dan Moore’s performance against the current NFL sack leader Myles Garrett. Moore was often left on an island with the elite pass rusher, and held his own as well as could be expected. He let up a sack to Garrett, but so has 7 of the 8 other left tackles he’s faced this year. All in all, the line played well.
This is not to say they were perfect. They still need to brush up on their penalties. The offensive line themselves had 5 combined this weekend, 4 of them being holding calls. One of them was on center Kendrick Green on a successful 2-point conversion that got called back due to the penalty. They also need to continue to work on their pass protection. Roethlisberger had some rushed throws Sunday that with a little more time likely result in some positive plays for the offense. These are the next steps in the line continuing to improve.
All in all the group is improving, but still has some room for improvement. They know it as well, and will look at the positives and negatives from their last performance to keep building each week. They do deserve praise, and hopefully will continue to be the heart of this team, and get the offense where it wants to be as the season progresses.
How do yinz think the o-line has done so far this season? Click to comment below!
#SteelerNation
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
Coming into this season, the offensive line was the biggest question mark. After four games and the team sitting at 1-3, the fears around the young unproven group seemed all but confirmed, and the media was letting them have it. Their backs were against the wall, and they were challenged by their coaches and the pressure surrounding them to be better. To say they answered would be an understatement.
Over the first four games, Ben Roethlisberger was sacked 10 times, and seemed to rarely have time to throw. When he did, he often ended up on the ground. Over the last three games, they’ve cut that number down to 4. The rushing attack has dramatically increased as well. Through the first four weeks, they amassed 221 total yards rushing, and over the last three games, they’ve accumulated 381. The team’s commitment to the run has gotten back on track, and it was on display in Cleveland.
This group still has a long way to go, but to not notice their dramatic improvement would be ignorant. They’ve clearly watched the tape and worked hard to clean up the mistakes and improve from week to week. After Sunday’s win in the post game presser, Roethlisberger commended the group. He had this to say about them:
That’s big praise for the group that was supposed to be this team’s downfall. The young group is really stepping up when the team needs them most. Roethlisberger noted rookie left tackle Dan Moore’s performance against the current NFL sack leader Myles Garrett. Moore was often left on an island with the elite pass rusher, and held his own as well as could be expected. He let up a sack to Garrett, but so has 7 of the 8 other left tackles he’s faced this year. All in all, the line played well.
This is not to say they were perfect. They still need to brush up on their penalties. The offensive line themselves had 5 combined this weekend, 4 of them being holding calls. One of them was on center Kendrick Green on a successful 2-point conversion that got called back due to the penalty. They also need to continue to work on their pass protection. Roethlisberger had some rushed throws Sunday that with a little more time likely result in some positive plays for the offense. These are the next steps in the line continuing to improve.
All in all the group is improving, but still has some room for improvement. They know it as well, and will look at the positives and negatives from their last performance to keep building each week. They do deserve praise, and hopefully will continue to be the heart of this team, and get the offense where it wants to be as the season progresses.
How do yinz think the o-line has done so far this season? Click to comment below!
#SteelerNation
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
