Week 9 Game Recap: Denver Broncos 31, Pittsburgh Steelers 20

What you need to know

Denver Broncos

The Broncos took an early 14-0 lead and never looked back, thanks in large part to forcing six turnovers. QB Jake Plummer took full advantage of field position and mismatches despite little help by way of the running attack. RB Mike Bell averaged 1.6 ypc. in gaining just 28 yards with a long gain of four in the absence of starter Tatum Bell, although Mike Bell did add 40 yards receiving.

Plummer completed 16 of 27 for 227 yards and threw three touchdown passes. He hit WR Rod Smith with a 16 yard TD pass on Denver’s opening drive. Plummer then hooked up with Javon Walker on two fade routes, one just minutes after Smith’s score, and the other early in the fourth quarter to give the Broncos a commanding 11 point lead. While he didn’t lead any long sustaining drives (all scoring drives were less than five plays, 3:25 or both), Plummer displayed confidence and made smart decisions, all the while coming through with the big plays.

It was Walker, however, who stole the show. While his two fade TD catches were both timely and skillful, as were his catches of 61 and 38 yards, his 72 yard run on a reverse to open up the second half was his best of them all. Walker’s 206 total yards is a personal best and his three touchdowns tied his personal high from Week 3 of the 2004 season. Smith was the only other wide receiver to catch a pass.

The Broncos’ defense got lit up, to say the least. They allowed 433 yards passing on 38 completions. In allowing a soft cushion underneath, the Denver secondary gave up many, many short to medium range passes, which added up over time. They did hold the Steelers to under 100 yards rushing (96), but gave up 5.1 ypc., which is why the six forced turnovers proved to be the biggest factor. CB Champ Bailey had two interceptions and Kenard Lang had two sacks.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Turnovers, costly penalties and more turnovers once again cost the Steelers yet another winnable game. Three interceptions, two of significance, for QB Ben Roethlisberger occurred inside the Broncos’ ten yard line, while two fumbles inside the Broncos’ five yard line took anywhere from 12 to 28 potential points off the board for Pittsburgh.

Roethlisberger set a career high and team record with 38 completions on 54 attempts (third in team history) for 433 yards (second in team history). He rallied the Steelers twice within reach, but also threw two interceptions on poor decisions, both to CB Champ Bailey inside the ten yard line. His touchdown pass was one of his finer improvisational moves to date, when he found RB Willie Parker after rolling left and right before finally catching Parker in the end zone. But he was also the victim of two WR fumbles after the catch.

Hines Ward continues to improve after a slow start, as he caught seven balls for 127 yards, but had one of the Steelers’ two Steelers’ fumbles at the goal line. Cedrick Wilson had four receptions for 59 yards and also fumbled the ball at the Denver five. Rookie Santonio Holmes had two fumbles, one lost on a kick return, but he did have six catches for 58 yards. TE Heath Miller chipped in five receptions for 34.

Willie Parker had 67 receiving yards and the Steelers passing touchdown catch, and he also had 70 rushing yards and a four yard touchdown run. He averaged five yards a run, but only had 14 attempts. Najeh Davenport played the role of third down back and had 57 receiving yards and 17 rushing.

What you ought to know

QB Jake Plummer, Pass: 16 - 27 - 227 - 3 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 2 - 6 - 0

With yesterday’s performance, along with his Week 8 effort against Indianapolis, Plummer has erased most doubters on whether or not he can lead the Broncos offense. He got Denver moving fast with a four play, 63 yard drive, including a 38 yard fly pass to WR Javon Walker down the left sideline. Plummer capped it off with a 16 yards bullet to a leaping Rod Smith for a 7-0 lead. Plummer then hit Javon Walker on a fade route in the back of the end zone on third and ten (he tried the same play on second and ten). Plummer and Walker had a similar connection in the fourth quarter on another fade pass for a ten yards score. He found Walker again for 61 yards on a pump fake, stop and go fly pattern that set up a late field goal to preserve the victory. Plummer took several other shots downfield proving he has the arm, the touch and the confidence of his coach to lead the Broncos. One of his deep balls was nearly intercepted, but the defender lost control as he stepped out of bounds.

RB Mike Bell, Rush: 17 - 28 - 0, Rec: 5 - 40 - 0 (6 targets)

Bell stepped in for starter Tatum Bell, but looked nothing like the solid replacement he was last week. Bell’s long gain of four yards on his first carry of the game goes a long way in explaining the frustrating afternoon he had trying to find daylight in the trenches. He rarely lost yardage, but had 13 carries in which he gained two yards or less. Bell did have 40 receiving yards, including a 24 yards dump and run pass from Plummer who was flushed out of the pocket. He did not have any goal line carries as the Broncos were content to exploit the passing game when in scoring range.

RB Cedric Cobbs, Rush: 3 - 9 - 0

Cobbs had three carries for nine yards in spelling Mike Bell. They were his first carries since the 2004 season.

RB Cecil Sapp, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (1 targets)

Sapp rumbled for seven yards on a screen pass to set up Javon Walker’s second touchdown.

WR Javon Walker, Rush: 1 - 72 - 1, Rec: 6 - 134 - 2 (12 targets)

Walker had a career day with 206 total yards and three touchdowns. Nearly every one of his catches was in isolation coverage with CB Ike Taylor, and only once did Taylor factor in on an incompletion to Walker. He got the Broncos off to a fast start catching a 38 yards pass down the left sideline on Denver’s first play of the game. On Denver’s next possession, he just missed pulling in a second down fade pass in the end zone, so Denver called the exact same play on third down and he held on for the touchdown. Walker outdid even himself to open the second half when he took a reverse towards the left sideline. DB Deshea Townsend’s missed tackle enabled Walker to cut back to the middle of the field and he was off to the races for a 72 yard touchdown run. Walker would later catch another ten yard fade pass for his third and game clinching touchdown pass, as well as a 61 yard stop and go, pump-fake bomb that set up a late field goal.

WR Rod Smith, Rec: 4 - 46 - 1 (7 targets)

Smith was the only other WR to register a catch. He opened the scoring with a leaping fingertip grab in the back of the end zone early in the first quarter. He was also the target of two deep balls from Plummer, one was overthrown and nearly intercepted, while the other he lost control of on his way to the ground. Javon Walker may have been in the spotlight, but Smith was still a reliable targetfor Plummer.

TE Tony Scheffler

After breaking out with four receptions and 51 yards last week, Scheffler put up his fifth goose egg of the season.

PK Jason Elam 1 - 1 FG, 4 - 4 XP, 7 points

Elam hit a 32 yard field goal to sew up the win in the fourth quarter and he hit all four extra points.

DEN Rush Defense

The Steelers attacked Denver by air almost at will throughout the game, as was part of their game plan, and as a result, the running game was partly ignored. That plus the Broncos early lead contributed to them allowing 96 rushing yards. LB Al Wilson led the front seven with nine solo tackles.

DEN Pass Defense

The Broncos were a sieve to the Steelers passing attack (433 yards allowed), but came up with timely turnovers to take up to four possible touchdowns off the board. Two Champ Bailey interceptions and two forced fumbles inside the five yard line prevented Pittsburgh from keeping pace and/or winning yesterday’s game. CB Darrent Williams had two fumble recoveries. DE Ebenezer Ekuban left the game in the second quarter with his left knee wrapped in ice.

QB Ben Roethlisberger, Pass: 38 - 54 - 433 - 1 TD / 3 INT, Rush: 3 - 9 - 0

Roethlisberger’s on field presence vastly improved from last week’s debacle at Oakland. He displayed his knack for feeling pressure, his scrambling skills in and around the pocket and his improv skills in finding the open receiver. But he also seemed reluctant on his feet, tentative to go for extra yardage when he decided to tuck and run. And despite his numbers (38-54, 433 yards), Roethlisberger coughed up two interceptions inside Denver’s ten yard line. With an obvious safety blitz coming, he missed Cedrick Wilson badly, who correctly read the blitz and ran the hot route skinny post to the hash marks. But Roethlisberger chucked the ball towards the sidelines, as he backpedaled and threw off his back foot. His second interception was in double coverage on a deep pass to Wilson. Nevertheless, 433 yards and a touchdown is plenty good fantasy wise despite his three interceptions. His touchdown pass included him rolling left out of harm’s way, then rolling right back to the middle of the field, stopping, and then floating a 15 yards pass to Willie Parker in the second quarter.

RB Willie Parker, Rush: 14 - 70 - 1, Rec: 7 - 67 - 1 (10 targets)

Parker nearly matched his rushing yards (70) with his receiving yards (67). Despite having a low carry total, Parker made the best of his opportunities, averaging five yards a pop. He had his best success on the left side of the offensive line, including on a couple of screen passes. His first touchdown was hardly by design, as he rolled back and forth with a scrambling Roethlisberger and caught a floater at the goal line for a second quarter touchdown. He also responded in the third quarter with the team down by 11 when he barreled his way through his own blockers for a three yard touchdown run. Parker did have one of Pittsburgh’s six fumbles, but it was recovered by the Steelers.

RB Najeh Davenport, Rush: 2 - 17 - 0, Rec: 5 - 57 - 0 (5 targets)

Davenport had two runs of nine and eight, but he proved to be a worthy receiving back with 57 yards out of the backfield, mostly on fourth quarter check downs in the hurry up offense. But he also ran two successful screen plays, including one on second and 17, for a 19 yard pickup. He added one kick return for 23 yards.

WR Hines Ward, Rec: 7 - 127 - 0 (11 targets)

Ward led the team once again in receiving (7-127) and he continued to make the tough catches, grind out yards and go all out for a win, this time, however, it hurt his team in the end. With less than two minutes remaining, Ward tried to stretch a short catch into six points when he leaped over two tacklers, but with the ball stretched outward, he lost control when he was hit and Denver recovered to clinch the victory. Ward’s long of 63 yards was just a routine short hook for five yards, but he spun away from the initial tackle and raced down the right sidelines to help set up a Jeff Reed field goal.

WR Santonio Holmes, Rec: 6 - 58 - 0 (7 targets)

Holmes’ roller coaster ride continues as set a personal best in receptions and contributed 58 yard receiving, but he lost his job as kick and punt returner (for the time being anyway) with two more fumbles on special teams (one lost). Holmes’ confidence seemed to be on shaky ground after cascades of boos flooded Heinz Field upon his second fumble, but he rallied as a receiver to catch four of his six passes in the second half. He had 53 return yards before taking a back seat to Cedrick Wilson and Ike Taylor as punt and kick returners.

WR Cedrick Wilson, Rec: 4 - 59 - 0 (10 targets)

Wilson, who took over as punt returner for Holmes, also fumbled a ball, after he stretched a routine out pattern into a 35 yard gain, before being stripped at the Denver five yard line. His other three receptions went for a combined 14 yards. Wilson two punt returns gained four total yards.

WR Nate Washington, Rec: 3 - 24 - 0 (7 targets)

Washington caught a 17 yards pass over the middle to start the two minute drill in the second quarter, eventually leading to a Jeff Reed field goal. His other two receptions were dump offs for short gains.

TE Heath Miller, Rec: 5 - 34 - 0 (5 targets)

Miller was a check down option for Roethlisberger as well as a target for a two quick passes in the flat, all for short, but effective yardage. His five catches are a season high.

TE Jerame Tuman, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (1 targets)

Tuman caught a seven yard pass for a first down to Denver’s six yard line, which set up Parker’s touchdown run two plays later.

PK Jeff Reed 2 - 3 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 8 points

Reed missed wide right on a 40 yard field goal attempt, but connected later from 46 yards and again from 29. He also converted two extra points.

PIT Rush Defense

The Steelers smothered the Broncos’ running backs and QB to just 43 yards on 22 carries. A 72 yard reverse touchdown run to Javon Walker, however, made the numbers against Pittsburgh look worse than it really was. LB James Farrior had 12 tackles.

PIT Pass Defense

Poor coverage and tackling plagued this unit in giving up several big plays and they just couldn’t deliver a stop when it was needed most. CB Ike Taylor was awful in keeping up with WR Javon Walker and gave up both fade touchdown passes. CB Deshea Townsend lost control of an interception, missed an open tackle on Walker ten yards into his 72 yard rushing touchdown and was beat on Rod Smith’s touchdown pass. Aaron Smith had Pittsburgh’s only sack.