Steelers “Studs and Duds” from Week 5 against the Ravens
Studs and Duds takes a look at the winners and losers from each of the Pittsburgh Steelers games during the 2019 season. Check with us after every game each week for our list, and to also see who climbed, or fell, down the rankings.
It was a rough one Steelers Nation.
The Steelers, who could be sitting in first place in the AFC North right now, dropped a hard-fought game to the Baltimore Ravens… in overtime.
This may have been the best overall game on both sides of the ball for the Steelers this season, so don’t expect many “duds” this week…
Studs
Cameron Heyward
A force on nearly every Sunday, Heyward added another sack in this game, raising his total for a team-tying 3.5 sacks on the season.
Heyward forced pressure on nearly every snap and should’ve been part of a near-miss on a safety, if not for being pulled away by Ravens C Matt Skura at the last moment.
T.J. Watt
Joining Heyward is Watt, who shows up for every game and was also the first man in on the near-safety play.
Watt has also tied the team lead with 3.5 sacks so far this season and had three total tackles for loss against the Ravens.
Minkah Fitzpatrick
It’s been quiet in the Steelers secondary as of late and Fitzpatrick is a big reason why.
His pass breakup early in the game led to a Kameron Kelly interception, further paying dividends for the Steelers trade several weeks ago.
Mason Rudolph
Mason belongs on this list just because of how he stood tall in the pocket and delivered a bigtime third down throw while simultaneously being knocked out of the game.
Prior to that play in the third quarter, Rudolph started to silence his doubters by completing several passes downfield and looking incredibly capable of leading the Steelers offense into the future. It’s unfortunate that he left the game in the manner he did and that he may be out for some time while in the concussion protocol.
Devin Bush
Bush’s interception after a silly penalty was a thing of beauty. That’s how you make up for your mistakes and the play shows that in only his fifth game, Bush can be a game-changer.
Duds
Jaylen Samuels
My darling here last week, “Jay Slash” threw an ill-advised pass that was picked off, while operating out of the wildcat formation that was a successful gimmick just six days earlier.
He would only rush three times for two yards in this entire game, which was easily the worst performance of any player on the Steelers offense.
Mike Tomlin
While I’m nowhere near the “Fire Tomlin” crowd of criticism, there were a few questionable decisions throughout the game that irked everyone, but here’s the ones that really got me:
- Not calling timeout with about 30 seconds remaining on the clock in the second quarter, following a 4-yard Jaylen Samuels catch. This easily cost the Steelers an extra play or two – the timeout was never used, but I’m thinking Tomlin felt he had to secure it in the event one of his young players didn’t get out of bounds… which would’ve cost them any points at all in theory.
- Not challenging the aforementioned no-safety stop in the endzone. Those two points, plus a change in possession, may have been all that was needed for a Steelers victory.
- Allowing the Jaylen Samuels pass play on the first possession, despite being deep in their own territory. The turnover cost the Steelers 7 points.
And no, I won’t mention the overtime coin toss call, because, it wasn’t as controversial as many are making it out to be. The Steelers offense was on their fourth-string quarterback, essentially the “camp arm” of training camp. Regardless, their starting field position was averaging near the 10-12-yard line on kickoffs, while the defense was red-hot.
I get you can lose in sudden death to a big play, but likewise the Steelers defense could’ve forced a big play and ended the game too, based on the way they were playing.
The decision worked out in “stud” fashion regardless of the risk, as the defense forced a three-and-out and got Pittsburgh’s offense the ball on their 35: a 20-plus-yard field position gain versus what Justin Tucker was forcing them to do all game.
