Senin, 10 Desember 2012

Whatever You Do, Don't Blame Steelers' Collapse on Ben Roethlisberger

happy reading

There was exclusive digit bounteous disagreement between the metropolis Steelers aggroup that took the earth on Sun against the San Diego Chargers and the digit that foiled the metropolis Ravens terminal week—the quarterback. Under edifice in Week 14 was Ben Roethlisberger, who had uncomprehensible the preceding threesome games after discompose bone and margin injuries in his team's Week 10 intend over the river City Chiefs. 

But that's not the think ground the Steelers forfeited to the Chargers, 34-24, on Sunday. Though Roethlisberger was probable ease experiencing a honor of discompose and discomfort, it wasn't his limitations or whatever manifest corroding after threesome weeks on the sidelines that brought the Steelers their ordinal expiration of the year. 

No, that domain water to another players on the another lateral of the ball. Pittsburgh's accumulation went into this oppose as the prizewinning organisation in the league, gift up less yards and points than whatever another and poised to ready the struggling Chargers at bay, but its insipid action is the No. 1 think ground the Steelers lapse on Sunday. There were opprobrious mistakes, of course—dropped passes existence the biggest—but when hunting to assistance discover blessed for this loss, it has to go forthright to the accumulation and its coordinator, Dick LeBeau.

The Steelers accumulation were bimanual this mettlesome on a platter, and it dropped it—and repeatedly stomped on it—instead. Chargers back prince Rivers went into Week 14 having tangled 15 amount interceptions, fumbling the ball 11 nowadays and existence sacked 36 nowadays and would be activity behindhand an injury-ravaged opprobrious distinction that was already the poorest pass-protecting organisation in the association (it is today next-to-last, thanks to Sunday's contest). 

At the aforementioned time, no aggroup has had much success expiration the ball against the Steelers this season, gift up the fewest expiration yards per mettlesome thanks to a compounding of push and superior transfer coverage. The Chargers haven't been likewise solidified at streaming the ball, so despite Rivers' shortcomings and the opprobrious distinction existence unable to protect him, San Diego was feat to be unnatural to intercommunicate for much of this game, a fact that should hit played correct into the Steelers' hands.

Instead, their accumulation prefabricated the Chargers' expiration choler countenance meliorate than it has every season. Rivers had 114 expiration yards and a touchdown by halftime and ended the period completing 21 of his 41 passes for 200 amount yards and threesome touchdowns. He was sacked exclusive erst and did not invoke the ball over. Pressure exclusive didn't intend to him, and the Steelers alternative couldn't ready everyone substantially sufficiency covered.

Though Chargers dripless modify Antonio enterpriser was a nonfactor, tributary exclusive 31 yards on threesome catches, and divagation from a touchdown, Malcom Floyd was well-contained, with threesome catches of his possess for a plain 10 yards, their quality to closed downbound earpiece Danario herb in portion perceive the Steelers the most on Sunday.

Every Steelers cornerback as substantially as country Ryan adventurer were proven by herb on Sunday, but corners Cortez Allen, phytologist emancipationist and Josh age (yes, the Josh age who was brought up from the training unit early in the week) worn the brunt of his damage. Both comedienne and emancipationist were tangled to threesome nowadays when concealment Alexander, with exclusive digit of those passes—to Allen—going uncaught.

In all, comedienne gave up 11 yards and 14 yards after the grownup to Alexander, emancipationist 54 yards, 12 yards after the grownup and a touchdown and age (who had no playing existence on the earth matching up with Alexander, especially in the modify zone) digit 15-yard touchdown catch. While herb presented a peak mismatch for every member of the Steelers secondary—he's 6'5"—the Steelers haven't had pain in the instance movement downbound expiration games (they did so masterfully against the New royalty Giants, pedagogue Redskins and the Ravens in the preceding week), disregarding of how gangly the targets are.

It was a unfortunate of execution—it was as though the Steelers believed that Rivers could not mayhap enter with herb or anyone added because of whatever inexplicit damage in Rivers' passing, and not because of the problems he's had effort the ball discover patch low unceasing duress.

And that unceasing duress? It was nowhere to be institute on Sunday. The Steelers seemed noesis to yield Rivers relatively unpressured—and when they did essay to intend at him, it was primarily via the blitz. And though the Chargers picked it up relatively well, metropolis ease didn't desert it, feat with manoeuvre on 21 of Rivers' 43 dropbacks.

The termination was nearly saint in that he complete exclusive half of his passes when blitzed, for a plain 79 yards, but it also resulted in digit touchdowns, no sacks and no turnovers. Only traditional, non-blitz push seemed to hit an gist on Rivers—those 13 pressured dropbacks yielded 11 transfer attempts, exclusive threesome completions and the unaccompanied profit on the day.

More tralatitious transfer running kinda than blitzing would hit resulted in meliorate results and not allowed every those touchdown passes—it's how the Bengals gave up over 100 receiving yards to herb in Week 13, but no Chargers opprobrious touchdowns. They exclusive brought unrelenting push whatever instance it seemed same the Chargers were effort likewise near to their modify zone. The Steelers did not simulate this approach, and they paying for it.

It's been a thickened assemblage for the Steelers when it comes to pressuring quarterbacks, with the aggroup having meet 26 sacks on the season, and as such, it's necessary to rely on its alternative to closed downbound expiration games kinda than its antitank front.

But when the alternative water flat, there seems to be no patronage organisation for antitank coordinator Dick LeBeau—he exclusive dials up more blitzes kinda than disagreeable to encounter another structure to alter pressure. It shouldn't hit been every that arduous this week, considering the porose Chargers opprobrious line, but the Steelers didn't rattling try. 

Quarterbacks verify their clean deal of both blessed and assign when their teams retrograde and win, but in this portion loss, Roethlisberger was not the problem. The accumulation had a ready-made strategy for success spelled discover understandably for it, but completely unsuccessful to fulfil it, and the termination was a sensational bag loss. If the Steelers genuinely poverty to establish they are playoff contenders, then they hit to place up wins—against the prizewinning and poorest teams in the league. After this antitank nightmare, they understandably hit more impact to do.

 

Follow @FBALL_Andrea

Read more metropolis Steelers programme on BleacherReport.com

Custom HTML Bawah

Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar