Preseason week number two has come to an end for the Pittsburgh Steelers as they dropped a 9-3 decision at home to the Buffalo Bills.
Offense
-Russell Wilson (8/10 47 yards 3 sacks) looked rusty. I think he perked up a bit on the last drive but overall there wasn’t much to be overly excited about.
-Justin Fields (11/17 92 yards) looked much more comfortable than he did last week. That said, he made some weird decisions late in the game that included taking sacks and throwing checkdowns on third and long. I have no doubt that Fields’ performance will only ramp up the QB battle within the fan base but let’s also remember Fields was playing against many guys who won’t be on NFL rosters next week too.
-Jaylen Warren left the game with a hamstring injury. Those can be so tricky. Could be a day to day type thing or something that lingers all year.
-Broderick Jones is in trouble. Blame the Steelers for not solidifying his position from the start if you choose, but his first half was brutal. He was consistently beaten in one on one situations making it easy to see why Troy Fautanu is the starter.
-We did not get an explanation on TV as to why George Pickens’ catch was ruled incomplete. I feel very confident that he got that second toe to drag before it went out of bounds.
-We got to see Cordarrelle Patterson for the first time and like the rest of the team it was a bit “ho-hum.” He had one carry for -1 yards and one reception for zero yards. Again, this is why we call it “preseason.”
-If I had to rank the bevy of running backs behind the top three I’d go La’Mical Perine, Daijun Edwards and Aaron Shampklin. All three run hard but it just feels like Perine gets the most out of his opportunities.
-I think Mason McCormick will be an excellent guard for the Steelers for some time. He may not become a full-time starter this year but he’s going to be close. He is a punisher who plays to the whistle every time.
-Arthur Smith’s play-calling was very conservative and curious to start the game. It was like vanilla trying to be even more vanilla.
Defense
-DeMarvin Leal played both the defensive line and outside linebacker. He was a guy coming into Camp who I wasn’t sure about after last year but he looked solid and I think he’s an easy make for the roster.
-Payton Wilson continued his strong play. He’s not going to start over Patrick Queen or Elandon Roberts but… It seemed Teryl Austin was using him in tandem with Queen while bringing him off in some third and shorter situations. We’ll see how this develops next week and beyond. Wilson left the game in the third with a potential concussion.
-With Wilson off, Mark Robinson (six tackles, TFL) got a lot of time and not surprisingly he looked great against the run for the most part. He can still overrun plays at times and he struggles in coverage too but at this point in his career I think he is what he is.
-I won’t be surprised if Nick Herbig (1.5 sacks) ends up with seven or eight sacks this season. While I’m not 100% confident in him as a run defender, he is absolutely relentless as a pass rusher. If he can be a spot pass rusher he’s going to be dangerous with a year of experience under his belt.
-Who is the nickel cornerback for this team? Beanie Bishop, Jr didn’t dress and as of right now I don’t know why? If it isn’t him then who is it? For all the talk of finding a number two wideout, don’t be surprised if they look for a slot corner too.
-Rookie Logan Lee at nose tackle doesn’t seem like a good idea.
-If Cam Heyward and Larry Ogunjobi can stay healthy then I think the chances of Keannu Benton having a monster season increases tenfold.
Special Teams
-Chris Boswell made his first appearance of the season. He was one for two on the evening. His first kick was a 48-yarder that clanged off the upright.
-Cam Johnston is a breath of fresh air. He averaged 59 yards on five kicks with two inside the 20. He AVERAGED 59 yards people! That’s insane.