The 5: Pittsburgh Steelers to watch versus the Cincinnati Bengals
After a very disheartening loss in their home opener against the Raiders, the Steelers look to rebound against a team they have owned for over a decade: the Cincinnati Bengals.
A lot of bad things occurred on Sunday, including injuries, misjudgments, and missed opportunities. Those items cost the Steelers a victory in their Heinz Field opener. With the crazy outcome in the rearview, these are five key players that must be observed on Sunday.
Chukwuma Okorafor
How do I say this lightly? Chuks had a horrible game.
In my opinion, he was exposed by Maxx Crosby many times because he was getting beat off the snap – to the point he was getting pancaked in reverse. What concerns me most is the one play when Chuks was put on his back within two seconds at one point does raise the question of whether he can hold his own?
His errors were one of several reasons Ben Roethlisberger received an old-fashioned beat down in the pocket. I hope he can play at a more effective level this game, otherwise Ben may be in trouble.
Chase Claypool
I think that Claypool is due for a breakout game. The Bengals are the prime opponent for it to happen.
Outside of his deep completion in the third quarter against the Raiders, Chase did not make many splash plays. He also had some trouble going up for combat catches, but I think that was due to awesome corner play by the Raiders.
If the Steelers want to get an early advantage against the Bengals’ defense, they need to get Claypool involved early by throwing some medium passes, comebacks, outs – anything to help open up coverage for the other guys.
Claypool needs those early targets to get warmed up. Once he gets going, he is hard to stop. (Ask last year’s Eagles why.)
Jamir Jones
With the possibility of T.J. Watt being sidelined, Jamir Jones may see a lot more playing time this weekend.
Jones shined during the preseason, beating out sixth-round draft pick Quincy Roche for a roster spot.
He shows promise but is raw, which showed when he was forced into action against the Raiders. He’ll need to improve quickly if his role expands on Sunday.
Pat Freiermuth
Get Freiermuth involved more!
It’s frustrating to see the Steelers lack of using their rookie tight end in the passing game more often. The few times he’s been called on, he has shown he can be a game-changer.
Let him loose Mike Tomlin! Use Pat inside the red zone so he can prove why the Steelers drafted him in the second round.
Joe Haden
The absence of Haden was felt last Sunday.
So far he has been a full participant in practice this week. Hopefully, he will be able to roll against the Bengals.
His contribution to the secondary is very underrated. If Haden plays, the communication will be drastically better. They can look to slow down Bengals receivers Tee Higgins and Jamar Chase, as quarterback Joe Burrow is no slouch.
They will need 100% focus back there to make sure the Ruggs situation does not occur again with Cincinnati’s slew of capable, young receivers.
