Taken from the grade book of a teacher who, if nothing else, is happy to see one half of his class picking up the slack when the other half stumbles, here is the Steelers Report Card for the 2019 win over the Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.
Devin Bush forces Tyler Boyd to fumble. Photo Credit: AP, via Tribune-Review
Quarterbacks
On the first two drives preceding his interception, Mason Rudolph looked OK. After the interception, Rudolph was tentative and played poorly. Devlin Hodges stepped in and connected on his first 2 throws, the 2nd of which went for a touchdown. Which means he was 3 of 9 on the rest of the day….. Grade: C-
Running Backs
The Steelers effectively deployed 4 running backs to rush for a combined total of 160 yards, a season high for the team. Kerrith Whyte ripped off a few impressive runs, as did Trey Edwards. Jaylen Samuels had 2 carries and 3 catches. Overall, a solid game by the Steelers running backs. Grade: B
Tight Ends
For unknown reasons, it is pretty clear that the Steelers tight ends won’t play much of a role in the 2019 passing game, as Vance McDonald had 1 yard on 1 catch for 1 target. Nick Vanett did not get targeted. Grade: C
Wide Receivers
While he’s a long way from being a superstar, with each week James Washington seems to inch up his game a notch and every week he makes an important contribution. Diontae Johnson had 3 catches on 6 targets but all went for short gains. Deon Cain’s 1 catch for 35 yards set up the Steelers first field goal. Tevin Jones had 1 catch for 9 yards on 3 targets. Grade: C+
Offensive Line
On the plus side, after giving up 2 holding penalties and 1 false start against the Browns, the Steelers offensive line didn’t get flagged for either penalty. And when the game was on the line, the Steelers offensive line delivered the run blocking that was needed. Cincinnati knew it was coming and couldn’t stop it. On the negative side, the Bengals had 6 tackles for losses, registered 3 sacks and laid on 7 more QB hits. More quality and more consistency is needed. Now. Grade: C-
Defensive Line
Cameron Heyward is a monster. Heled the team in tackles, registered a sack, had a hand in two tackles for losses and hit Ryan Finley 4 more times. Javon Hargrave had 4 tackles. Outside of a few runs late in the game, Joe Mixon wasn’t a factor in the game, and that starts with the line. Grade: A-
Linebackers
T.J. Watt had a strip sack and remained in the game following a bone bruise. Bud Dupree was quiet for much of the game, until he ended it with a strip sack of his own. Mark Barron had an almost safety. Devin Bush authored the biggest play for the linebackers when he forced a fumble by Tyler Boyd and Pittsburgh’s 8, changing the game for good. Grade: A
Secondary
And who just happened to scoop up the fumble Devin Bush caused? Minkah Fitzpatrick who had concentration needed to stay in bounds and return it 36 yards. Joe Haden defended 3 passes, including two of which came during the game’s final moments. Mike Hilton also got a hand on three passes of his own. Steven Nelson tipped away another pass. Terrell Edmunds and Joe Haden gave away successive big pass plays which led to an easy score, which brings this group’s grade down. Grade: A-
Special Teams
Diontae Johnson returned 4 punts for 5.3 yards, while the Steelers punt coverage was sound. Kerrith Whyte didn’t do much on his first kick return, and the Steelers gave up an average of 23.5 yards on kick returns. Until the Steelers can managed to get that average down, teams are going to continue returning kicks instead of taking the touchback.
Jordan Berry boomed off 7 punts that averaged 45.1 yards and, more importantly, nailed 3 inside the 20. Chris Boswell was a perfect 3 for 3 on field goals, including a 47 yarder. Grade: B+
Delvin Hodges rallies Steelers. Photo Credit: AP, via Tribune-Review
Coaching
The Steelers were playing one of the worst offenses in the NFL that, on top of that was, missing its best receiver. While Keith Butler’s boys didn’t quite pitch a perfect game, they did allow one touchdown that looked all too easy, they limited Cincinnati to 10 points. The Bengals went 2-12 on third downs, punted 9 times and suffered seven 3 and outs.
- Most importantly, when Cincinnati threatened to get back in the game, the Steelers defense delivered a turnover.
It is easy to criticize Randy Fichtner and his “one touchdown a game” offense. And to be certain, Fichtner has his faults. It’s also true that he was playing 6 players who’d been cut previously this season. It was not pretty, but the Steelers offense came from behind once, reestablished the lead another time, and then added insurance points.
- While ever popular with fans, benching a quarterback is fraught with risk.
Yes, it can give an offense and even an entire season a spark. See Tommy Maddox in 2002. Or it can blow up in a coach’s face (see Bill Cowher, Kordell Stewart and Mike Tomczak in the rain at Tampa in 1998).
Or the replacement quarterback can do just well enough to get by.
That’s what happened on Sunday afternoon. Devlin Hodges provided the Steelers with just enough spark to push the Steelers on to victory. However, Hodges hardly has a “hot hand.” Mike Tomlin will need to manage this with care moving forward, but on Sunday switching quarterbacks was the right decision. Grade: B+
Benny Snell rushes in the 4th quarter. Photo Credit: AP via Tribune-Review
Unsung Hero Award
It was the Steelers best rushing effort of the season and their best rusher of the game brought his best when the game was on the line. He might have been held under 100 yards, clocking in at 98 yards on 21 carries, but 63 of those yards came on nine 4th quarter carries. The Steelers needed that type of effort to close with the win, and Benny Snell Jr. delivered it and for that he wins the Unsung Hero Award for the win over Cincinnati.
