games and continue to “stack wins.” After their 52-21 thrashing of the Carolina Panthers
in Week 10
Cheap Maurkice Pouncey Jersey , the team now has a chance to rest and relax and prepare for the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 11. Today in the
Black-and-gold links article, we talk about the Steelers’ offensive line. When
someone talks about the team’s offensive resurgence, you can’t talk about skill
players like Ben Roethlisberger, James Conner or Antonio Brown without talking
about the big men up front doing the dirty work.A combination of high draft
picks and hard-working undrafted free agents and what you have is a Mike Munchak
masterpiece.Let’s get to the news:Steelers’ offensive line bonding into NFL’s
bestBy: Joe Rutter, Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewThe Pittsburgh Steelers just piled
up 52 points, their highest total in 34 years. Seven players scored touchdowns,
Ben Roethlisberger threw five touchdown passes and compiled the fourth perfect
passer rating of his career, and the running game contributed 138 yards.It was
an all-around dominating performance on offense, and the team’s franchise
quarterback made sure nobody forgot about the contributions of the five players
blocking for him.“It all starts up front,” Roethlisberger said Thursday after
the Steelers dismantled the Carolina Panthers, 52-21, for their fifth
consecutive win. “You can say what you want about the skill guys, but we’re
nothing without them up front.”Roethlisberger touting his offensive linemen is
hardly new. He customarily credits his blockers when dishing out reasons for the
offense’s success. It’s just that now whenever Roethlisberger calls his linemen
the best in the NFL, there’s few who can argue with him.Consider that:??In the
past six games, Roethlisberger has been sacked four times, and one of those came
on the last offensive play at Baltimore when he gave himself up to allow the
clock to continue running. The Steelers are on pace to allow fewer than 25 sacks
for a third consecutive season.??James Conner, stepping in for the absent
Le’Veon Bell
Youth Bud Dupree Jersey , has four 100-yard rushing games, including three in a row during a winning streak that has catapulted the Steelers from
last to first in the AFC North with a 6-2-1 record.??Roethlisberger has
completed 66 percent of his passes, his best percentage in three years, he’s on
pace to reach 5,000 yards for the first time in his 15-year career and set a
career best in touchdown passes. He has thrown one interception in his past four
games.“The offensive line has been playing spectacular,” Roethlisberger said
after the Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens, 23-16, on Nov. 4. “Everything
you’re asking them to do, blocking in the pass game and the run game, opening
holes against the No. 1 defense in the world, there’s a reason they are that
good.“You can say what you want about James and the running game, but it starts
up front. We go as those guys go.”Tim Benz: Can the Steelers finally exploit
Jacksonville’s offensive line?By: Tim Benz, Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewUpdated 17
hours agoHeading into the Steelers’ playoff game against Jacksonville last
season, Pittsburgh fans and media — and even some in the locker room — seemed to
have a pretty clear-cut opinion of the Jaguars.After seeing the 30-9 beatdown
administered by the Jags during the regular season at Heinz Field, most folks
around these parts seemed to think:??The Jags defense is frightening.??Leonard
Fournette is a beast.??Quarterback Blake Bortles can be had.??The offensive line
is pretty good. But not great.Those predictions resulted in a mixed bag of
accuracy during the rematch.The Jaguars defense allowed 42 points and 545 yards.
Yet it also created two turnovers resulting in touchdowns. Bortles wasn’t
dynamic, but he was efficient, going 18-for-24 with no interceptions and a
touchdown. And Fournette followed a 181-yard performance in the regular-season
matchup with another 108 yards and three touchdowns.But how about that Jags
offensive line? It was a constant. For a unit with only moderate
acclaim
Cheap Antonio Brown Jersey , the blockers looked like the 1995 Cowboys.Between games, Steelers defenders mostly brushed off Fournette’s success
, chalking up the Game 1 yardage to one 90-yard gallop in garbage time.“If you
watch the film, guys weren’t really getting blocked off the ball,” defensive end
Stephon Tuitt said before the January rematch. “It’s just holes. Gaps. They
exploited our gaps really well.”Also that week, defensive end Cameron Heyward
claimed “it was just three or four plays” that hurt his team in the first game
against Jacksonville.In the playoff game, it was more like 40 plays as the
Jaguars offense continually controlled the line of scrimmage and opened creases
for Fournette, T.J. Yeldon and even a scrambling Bortles.“We were able to get a
hat on a hat,” Jacksonville offensive lineman A.J. Cann saidafter the win. “We
stayed on our blocks. The running backs found holes and got positive
yards.”Throughout the two games, the Jaguars offensive line paved the way for
395 yards rushing and allowed just two sacks.However, that unit hasn’t been the
same this year.How the Steelers and Le’Veon Bell both win the divorceBy: Jeremy
Fowler, ESPNNo one wanted it to come to this.Not Le’Veon Bell, who, money aside,
wanted to retire a Pittsburgh Steeler.Not the Steelers, who offered Bell a $70
million extension this offseason, though without the guarantees to Bell’s
liking.And certainly not Pittsburgh fans
Authentic Artie Burns Jersey , who cheered on Bell for his prolific play for five seasons.But Bell’s lost season -- finalized Tuesday when he didn’t show by
the 4 p.m. deadline to sign his franchise tag -- was a byproduct of two stubborn
sides that weren’t meant to negotiate.Bell was willing to forfeit $14.5 million
to become a standard-bearer for undervalued top players everywhere, banking on a
lucrative deal as an unrestricted free agent in March.The Steelers won’t budge
from their traditional -- maybe archaic -- contract structures that in most
cases don’t offer full guarantees beyond a signing bonus.If Bell was with
another franchise, he might not be in this situation.But both sides can still
get what they want, and be better off for it.(More in the link above...)Friday
Night Steelers Six Pack of questions and open thread: Week 6 Bengals Edition
Several people have asked if we could bring back the Friday Night Open Thread. I
had moved the event to Saturday morning, but after minimal success, I decided to
bring it back to Friday night — with a slight twist.I liked the Saturday
Six-Pack theme, so I decided to just take the six questions and move them to
Friday night. Say hello to Friday Night Six-Pack of Steelers Questions and open
thread!The rules haven’t changed...Quick rundown of the ground rules.I’ll ask at
least four questions strictly related to the Steelers.The rest of the questions
could be about anything.Be respectful.Have fun talking about the
Black-and-gold.That’s it! With that out of the way, it’s time to get this party
started. Hey, don’t act like you’ve never done a little Friday night drinking.
Here goes:1. Fun prediction game to play: Who score the Steelers’ first TD, and
who makes the first tackle of the game?2. Are you someone who isn’t a believer
in the Steelers? If so, will a win Sunday get you back on track? Or will it take
more than that? Explain what would need to take place before you believe again.
3. OVER/UNDER Bengals sacks of Ben Roethlisberger: 34. Finish the sentence...for
the Steelers to win on Sunday ________ needs to have a big game.5. If there was
ONE player on the current Bengals’ roster you would want on the Steelers’
roster, who would it be, and why?6. Who are you rolling with? Artie Burns or
Coty Sensabaugh? No matter what, always remember...HERE WE GO
STEELERS!PODCASTS
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