Re-Focused - Steelers @ Ravens, Week 1

 The Steelers last lost an opening day fixture back in 2002 when Kordell Stewart squared off against Tom Brady. They won seven of the last 10 against Baltimore.  They rolled into Baltimore fully expecting to win another close encounter between the two rivals.

It didn’t happen. Baltimore got the win, but they also rolled right over the Steelers racking up a 35-7 margin, and it could have been more. The Steelers were in the game for much of the first half, then the wheels completely fell off in the second half and they just kept sinking deeper.

But it’s Week 1 and we’re not going to jump to any rash conclusions. The Steelers will be fine and Baltimore aren’t Super Bowl bound based on one game, but let’s see if there’s anything we can learn from the performances.

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Pittsburgh – Three Things of Note

1)   Tale of the Tackles

With no Willie Colon last season the Steelers were hurting in a major way at OT and this game he showed why they missed him. Even with allowing a hit and another pressure he recorded a +1.6 game, grading well against both the run and pass. Unfortunately for the Steelers he’s already been placed on IR with a triceps injury and is done for the year, putting the Steelers back in a hole. On the other side Jonathan Scott was far from as good with a -4.4 grade, allowing two sacks, a hit and three further pressures. The Steelers can’t continue to rely on Ben Roethlisberger bailing them out from poor offensive line play. Think how good he might be if they actually protected him?

2)   Time taking its toll on Aaron Smith?

Aaron Smith has had to deal with a laundry list of injuries. He’s not a young guy anymore and he’s spent a long time away from the field in recent seasons. Is this game evidence that the injuries are more than he can overcome to return to the player he once was? In this game he was blanked entirely from the scoresheet. He failed to register pressure on any of his 27 pass rushes, and was routinely handled at the point of attack by Michael Oher and others in the run game.

3)   Polamalu is human

We all know the score: When Troy Polamalu plays the Steelers are great, when he doesn’t they look like a shadow of the side we expect and everybody anoints Polamalu defensive MVP. Well this time they were torn to shreds with him in the lineup and what’s more, actually contributing in no small way to the collapse. Polamalu (-2.3) was beaten in coverage on more than one occasion and was at fault for one of the Ravens touchdowns, but he was also much less of a force than we expect against the run or on the blitz, rushing just once in the game.

 

Baltimore – Three Things of Note

1)   Bryant McKinnie – He is who we thought he was.

For a man-mountain, McKinnie has always been a counter-intuitive player – better in pass protection than he ever was as a run blocker. A man of his obvious size and strength should be far better at driving people from the line of scrimmage (to somewhere around Omaha), but he routinely fails to manage it. In this game he allowed just a single pressure, from 33 pass rushes, but he was beaten in the run game frequently and his -2.3 PFF grade is almost all from the run game. Maybe the influence of Ray Lewis and others can motivate him in Baltimore, or maybe he’ll be the same player he has always been – above average, but never great.

2)   Usual suspects perform

As you know if you checked the box score – Terrell Suggs had a great game. He notched three sacks, another hit, two more pressures, and forced fumbles all day long, but he wasn’t alone. Haloti Ngata also dominated in both areas of the game, and Ed Reed was at his supreme best, even if he was aided by Roethlisberger throwing to him like they were old college roommates. Even the ageless Lewis got in on the act, forcing a fumble late in the fourth quarter when the Steelers were driving.

3)   The CB issue

We didn’t even get a chance to grade top pick Jimmy Smith. The corner was injured on the opening kick off and never saw the field in anger on defense. That meant Cary Williams saw 56 snaps, 40 of them in coverage, and wound up with a -1.2 grade, largely by virtue of some ridiculously large cushions he was giving receivers. We know the Steelers have some speed at WR, but you’ve got to trust yourself a little more than that.

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Game Notes

● The Steelers had as many turnovers (7), as points in this game.

● On offense the Baltimore Ravens ran 33 run plays, and 33 pass plays. It’s easy to be balanced when you’re beating up on somebody.

● The Steelers on the other hand ran 17 run plays, but 47 pass plays. It’s harder when you’re chasing the game from the outset.

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PFF Game Ball:

Terrell Suggs, DE, Baltimore Ravens

Looking past Suggs would be doing so for the sake of it. He terrorized the Steelers all day and swung the game with turnovers.

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Follow Sam on Twitter: @SamMonson … and give our main Twitter feed a follow too: @ProFootbalFocus
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