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Week 16 Game Recap: Pittsburgh Steelers 14, Tennessee Titans 31
What you need to know
| Pittsburgh Steelers |
QB Ben Roethlisberger was plagued by turnovers all day. His ball security was poor as evidenced by four fumbles, two of which were lost. He also tossed two interceptions, one coming back for a Titans touchdown. The Steelers offensive game plan was to get the ball deep and Roethlisberger held on to the ball in the pocket to allow his receivers to get downfield. During the second half and playing from behind, he faced a good Titans pass rush which generated five sacks. Aside from the turnovers, Roethlisberger posted great yardage numbers on the day.
RB Willie Parker got the start, sharing time with RB Mewelde Moore. Their roles shifted back to early in the season where Parker was the featured back and Moore played on third down. Parker was bottled up all day by the Titans defense. Moore chipped in on few draw plays, but neither was very effective. Parker's carries came on counter plays and delayed draws and the Titans defense was not fooled. Both backs had low overall yardage numbers.
WR Hines Ward had a quiet first half but in the second half he became Ben Roethlisberger's favorite target in the passing game, hauling in a third quarter touchdown that put the Steelers back in the lead for a brief time. Ward ended up with great numbers, but some of them came late with the Titans in prevent mode.
| Tennessee Titans |
QB Kerry Collins managed a very efficient passing game early on. He went to his wideouts on shorter passes that acted to supplement the running game. His only deep shot came on a play action pass that resulted in a touchdown. Collins was steady in the pocket for most of the game and was well protected from the Pittsburgh pass rush. In the second half, and with the lead, the Titans were able to run the ball and control the clock.
RB Chris Jackson had only limited success in the first half. When you consider how effective the Titans' running game had been the season, as equally impressive as the Steelers run defense and this was a classic power against power match up. The outcome of that key battle resulted in three yards per carry in the half and close to four yards for the entire game. The game situation gave RB Len Dale White the majority of the running attempts in the second half. Johnson finished with 69 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown.
WR Justin Gage was the best scoring option in the passing game. He made the most of limited opportunities in the Titans conservative game plan, posting over 100 yards and a touchdown on a well executed play action pass in the second quarter. Jones showed good elusiveness and sure hands.
What you ought to know
| QB Ben Roethlisberger, Pass: 26 - 40 - 331 - 2 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 3 - 14 - 0 |
Pittsburgh wanted to establish a deep passing game and they asked Ben Roethlisberger to hold onto the ball longer to get his starting wideouts downfield. This was a major mistake. His protection, which has been a major question mark this season, did not deliver. He took many big hits from the swarming Titans defense and will likely get a day off next Sunday, in what will be a meaningless game for Pittsburgh. A bright spot was that Pittsburgh rediscovered the tight end position and that resulted in 8 catches today. Ben also did a decent job to keep drives alive by converting close to half of his third down attempts.
| RB Willie Parker, Rush: 18 - 29 - 0, Rec: 1 - 2 - 0 (3 targets) |
RB Willie Parker's day did not begin very well. He was not able to get much going early and once the Steelers fell behind, they were forced to pass, limiting his carries. Outside of a 13 yard run, he was on a one yard per carry pace. Even on that longer run, his early season speed was not there. Parker has not posted big numbers in the past few games. He is not looked for out of the backfield very much. It is unclear how effective Parker will be going forward and his fantasy potential in is question.
| RB Mewelde Moore, Rush: 3 - 28 - 0, Rec: 2 - 20 - 0 (3 targets) |
Although he did not get the start due again, RB Mewelde Moore made the most of his opportunities. He posted nearly ten yards per touch. In the running game he broke a few draws for decent yardage. However, he is clearly not able to stay on the field in all situations, so Moore's role is giving way to Parker and may not be a reliable fantasy play going forward.
| WR Hines Ward, Rec: 7 - 109 - 1 (10 targets) |
Hines Ward had his usual solid game, including a TD on a nice catch in traffic where he held on after a good hit. He caught most of balls in the second half and had a few intermediate passes. Ward remains in good health and still looks to be a solid play most weeks. He is still clearly the focus of the passing game in Pittsburgh. I could see him getting some rest next week; given Pittsburgh has nothing on the line.
| WR Santonio Holmes, Rec: 5 - 93 - 1 (8 targets) |
WR Santonio Holmes was looked for by Ben Roethlisberger on deep routes early on in the passing game hauling in a second quarter touchdown near the sideline where he beat man coverage. Like most games this season, Holmes's impressive talent shows itself in flashes, but he seems to have trouble staying focused in the game and inconsistent. Today was one of his better performances this season.
| WR Nate Washington, Rec: 3 - 38 - 0 (6 targets) |
WR Nate Washington did some damage I the second half, helping to keep some drives alive on third down. He did get open but could not connect on any deep passes. He is getting making the most of his limited looks, and is an integral part of the passing game.
| TE Heath Miller, Rec: 8 - 69 - 0 (9 targets) |
Miller's productive day saw him post a career high for catches, even though he did not have a great yard per catch average. He caught most of his passes in the middle of the field and converted a few third downs. Miller has all the talent to be a top-flight TE, but Pittsburgh does not typically put up big passing numbers on a regular basis to make him a major fantasy threat. This might be a short lived trend.
| PK Jeff Reed 0 - 1 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 2 points |
Reed missed a 33 yard field goal on his only attempt.
| PIT Rush Defense |
The Steelers gave up close to four yards a carry to Tennessee rushers. Given how well the Steelers' defense has been playing well all season, that number was a major surprise.
| PIT Pass Defense |
The Pittsburgh pass rush was absent recording only one sack and had few QB pressures. LB James Harrison got the sack after missing a few snaps due to an injured hip. Kerry Collins's ability to keep his offense out of long yardage situations kept the Steelers at bay. They gave up 300 total yards for the only time all season.
| QB Kerry Collins, Pass: 20 - 29 - 216 - 1 TD / 0 INT |
Collins played an effective game, with no turnovers and he made the plays when he needed to, moving the chains. He was not under pressure for most of the day, taking just one sack. His most telling statistic was 31 running plays against 30 passing, keeping the noticeable balance that has given the Titans such a great record. The only negative was a low three for fourteen conversion rate on third down, but that was more a by-product of the fact that Collins played with the lead and wanted to avoid any turnovers. All in all, Collins had a very good performance against the league's best defensive unit.
| RB Chris Johnson, Rush: 16 - 69 - 1, Rec: 2 - 1 - 0 (2 targets) |
Johnson was the featured back early in the game. He was not able to get to the outside and display his great speed that has been his trademark this season. His best run was a 21 yard scamper on a key fourth down call that got him in the end zone. Otherwise, his day was very mediocre. In a closer game, he would have likely posted slightly better numbers.
| RB LenDale White, Rush: 15 - 48 - 1 |
LenDale White was a significant factor in the second half, once the Titans got the lead. He was able to take advantage his power and was able to break numerous tackles, keeping the clock moving. This was most evident in his only red zone situation, where he broke a tackle and took in a score in the third quarter. His role looks to be shifting back toward a 50-50 split with Johnson. In bad weather games in the post-season, White may be the better play for fantasy owners. White didn't make any friends in Pittsburgh when the camera caught him at the end of the game stomping a Pittsburgh yellow towel on the ground on the sidelines.
| WR Justin McCareins, Rec: 6 - 55 - 0 (7 targets) |
McCareins was the possession receiver for this contest, making a few catches on shorter patterns underneath the Steelers' linebackers and near the sidelines. One catch in particular was on a third and long and was just inches short of the first down. He did not generate any big plays in the rest of game for that matter. His longest play was 19 yards.
| WR Justin Gage, Rec: 5 - 104 - 1 (7 targets) |
Gage was able to make the most of his limited opportunities. While one play did get the bulk of his production, he was also able to make a few other athletic catches. His longest reception was 34 yards. Gage seems to be Collins' most capable receiver.
| TE Bo Scaife, Rec: 4 - 26 - 0 (6 targets) |
Scaife was a security blanket for Kerry Collins. On the drive that the Titans began trailing for the first time, just after the second Steelers TD, Scaife had the bulk of his targets called. He was not a factor in the red zone.
| TE Alge Crumpler, Rec: 3 - 30 - 0 (3 targets) |
Crumpler showed some flashes of the receiving threat he was a few years ago, moving well with ball in open space. Once the Titans began going to Scaife in the second half, his targets stopped for the most part.
| PK Rob Bironas 1 - 1 FG, 4 - 4 XP, 7 points |
Bironas connected on a 42 yard field goal and all three extra points. He had no other opportunities.
| TEN Rush Defense |
The Steelers posted only three rushing yards per play. Tennessee was able to contain RB Mewelde Moore and Willie Parker, who combined for 57 yards on 21 attempts. A telling statistic was six tackles for loss in the running game. Given the loss of two Pro Bowl caliber linemen, this was an outstanding performance
| TEN Pass Defense |
The Titans' pass rush was able to generate constant pressure, and QB Ben Roethlisberger was sacked five times One of two Pittsburgh interceptions was returned for a touchdown by CB Michael Griffin. Again, another great job on display by the Titans defensive unit.
