Home Three Point Stance SCB Three-Point Stance; Your Steelers-Saints Gameday Guide

SCB Three-Point Stance; Your Steelers-Saints Gameday Guide

by Steeldad

The Pittsburgh Steelers hit the road for the first time this preseason. They dropped a 17-0 contest against Philadelphia last week. The Saints are coming off of a 16-9 loss against the Houston Texans.

What: Pittsburgh Steelers 0-2 at New Orleans Saints 0-2

Where: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA

When: Friday August 26th,  8pm ET

Weather: It’s indoors people.

Line: Saints -3

TV: KDKA TV Bob Pompeani, Charlie Batch with Missi Matthews and Jeff Verszyla on the sidelines

Radio: Steelers Nation Radio/WDVE Bill Hillgrove, Tunch Ilkin and Craig Wolfley on the sidelines.

Rabble TV: Not Broadcasting tonight

Key Injuries: Ladarius Green continues to be on the PUP list due to his ankle injury according to the Steelers. Bud Dupree and Artie Burns are not expected to play either.

Availability: Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell, and DeAngelo Williams will play.

Final 2015 NFL Ranks : Saints 2nd total offense ( 24th Rushing/ 1st Passing)/ 31st total defense ( 31st Rushing/ 31st Passing)… Steelers 3rd total offense (16th Rushing/3rd Passing)/21st total defense (5th Rushing/30th Passing)

What You Need to Know: The Steelers and Saints will play in the preseason for just the second time ever. The first time was the Hall of Fame Game in 2007 where the Steelers won 20-7.

What’s at Stake: Not a damn thing.

All-Time Series: Saints lead 8-7 in the regular season.

Series Highs: Preseason not available

What to Look For: In this space in the regular season, I’ll provide you with three keys to a Steelers’ win. Thus, “Three-Point Stance.” For the preseason, I’ll give you what we’re watching for since winning isn’t the number one objective.

The Steelers will take the bubble wrap off of their offensive stars Friday night in the Crescent City. That said, if Big Ben, AB and company go longer than a quarter/quarter and a half I’ll be stunned. There’s no question the goal is health but it’s also to see just what kind of rhythm the offense can get into. Once the stars depart, look for Landry Jones to go most of the way at quarterback and he has to be better. Sure, it’s debatable that ALL four interceptions weren’t on him but he knows that doesn’t matter. He needs to make better throws and better decisions.

On defense, I would expect the starters to go about a half. What I’ll be paying close attention to is how Keith Butler substitutes based on situations. Because it is the preseason, things will still be quite vanilla but it will still bear some watching. Once the subs come in, keep an eye on the reserve backers like Tyler Matakevich and L.J. Fort who are battling hard to make the roster. Shamarko Thomas is also a guy I’m watching. We know what he can do on special teams but can he be relied on for heavy duty in the secondary?

The special teams units were better last week than in the preseason opener but they are still a work in progress as many guys won’t even be on the roster in a week or two.

As always, the main goal is health. The Steelers must remain healthy as the regular season approaches.

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