Many concerns surrounded the Pittsburgh Steelers when they arrived in San Diego. How well would Mike Vick perform with another week under his belt? How will new kicker Chris Boswell react to kicking his first field goal in the NFL? And the obvious question: Will they emerge victorious?
Vick did just enough to not ruin everything. Hell, he even had some old school, Atlanta Falcons Mike Vick-type plays that definitely got the team out of binds at times. Chris Boswell could not have kicked a better field goal from 47 yards out.
And yes, they got the W.
The absolute brightest beacon on the field that day, however, proved to be none other than our beloved Le’veon Bell. This man was ALL OVER the field making plays, be it breaking ankles with disgusting jukes or running straight through the opposition as if they were made of jelly.
The San Diego Chargers have been pitiful against the run so far this season, ranking second to last in that category before Monday’s clash. It was pretty obvious that the Steelers were going to try to ram Bell down their throats.
He started the game off with a painstakingly slow start, often losing yards by trying to find plays where there simply weren’t any. DeAngelo Williams provided relief for Bell as he struggled with the flow of the game.
Their first wildcat formation play attempt ended in failure, as they lost a chunk of yardage in that one. We as fans haven’t seen that play during an actual game for some time now, yet it wasn’t surprising seeing as how Todd Haley likes to throw in the occasional gadget play to catch the defense off foot.
Once the second quarter arrived, Le’veon began to pick up the pace as he started to create highlight reels against the Chargers for huge gains. Two 20+ yard runs against them were momentous, as they provided a breath of fresh air to an offense that was stalling as they journeyed closer to the end zone.
Yet, Le’veon Bell’s most imperative moment didn’t come until the very last play of the night. With the goal line a mere one yard away, down three points, and the clock about to strike zero, the Steelers needed to return to their smashmouth football ways.
As soon as I saw that it was another wildcat play, I held my breath as the flashback of the previous attempt relayed vividly in my mind.
When the ball was snapped, Bell took advantage of a crucial David DeCastro block as he stretched to score the touchdown. It was glorious.
Bell finished the game with 21 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown.
Le’veon Bell is clutch, and that play further cemented that status. He just seems to always come in big when we need him. And we love him for it.
Stats and info courtesy of Steelers.com, NFL.com, and teamrankings.com
