There are no surprises among the Pittsburgh Steelers inactives this week. As the Steelers prepare to take on the Arizona Cardinals, they will once again be without running back James Conner and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. This is starting to feel like old news as this will mark the third straight game the two have missed.
It will once again be running back Benny Snell Jr. and wide receiver James Washington playing the roles of No. 1s at their respective positions.
Other inactives of note for Pittsburgh are cornerback Artie Burns and offensive tackle Chuks Okorafor.
For the Cardinals, they are coming into the game at full health. Based on their list, every one of their inactives are healthy scratches. Here are the Cardinals inactives.
The Steelers need to start fast and don’t let Kyler Murray beat them.
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
If the Pittsburgh Steelers want to stay in the playoff hunt, they have to get past the scrappy Arizona Cardinals. Despite their 3-8-1 record, the Cardinals have played some good football recently and aren’t going to just roll over for the Steelers. Here are our three keys to victory.
Contain Kyler Murray
The Cardinals are the opposite of the Steelers in the sense their defense is woeful but their offense is surprisingly efficient. They’ve scored more than 25 points in three of their last four games and with Murray getting back to 100 percent health, the Steelers defense cannot sleep on this group.
Our weekly Q&A to get the inside scoop on the Steelers opponent.
(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
It is time once again to go behind enemy lines and get the inside information on the Pittsburgh Steelers opponent for the week. This time around it’s the Arizona Cardinals so we sat down with our friends over at Cards Wire to get the inside scoop on Arizona and their rookie quarterback.
1-What is your assessment of Kyler Murray so far this season?
Aside from struggles in the first half of Week 1 and then last week against the Rams, he has been great. He protects the ball better than almost every quarterback in the league. He has made plays with his legs and his arm. He has not been the reason the Cardinals have lost so much. He already looks like a franchise quarterback.
If you have been paying attention, this should come as no surprise. According to the Pittsburgh Steelers, running back James Conner and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster are both out for this week’s game against the Arizona Cardinals.
This will be Smith-Schuster’s third straight game he will miss as he continues to deal with a knee injury. For Conner, this is his third in a row and fifth in six games as he works to come back from a shoulder injury.
No other players appeared on the game status report for the Steelers. Benny Snell Jr. will replace Conner in the lineup and James Washington hopes to continue his break out as the team’s top receiving option.
NFL experts picking the Steelers to beat the Cardinals this week.
This week, the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-5) take on the Arizona Cardinals (3-8-1) in a full-blown playoff atmosphere. No, this game doesn’t carry the weight for the Cardinals it does for Pittsburgh but you can bet they would love to defend their home turf and do their part to wreck the Steelers season.
And it seems some of the NFL pundits feel like the Cardinals have the talent to do it. We once again looked to our friends over the NFL Pick Watch for all the expert picks in one spot.
As of Friday morning, 83 percent of the experts are going with the Steelers. Considering the disparity in records, you might have thought more experts would be leaning Pittsburgh. But the reality is when it comes to the Steelers, you can never assume anything.
The biggest challenge this will be whether or not they can score enough points on offense to win. Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray presents a unique athletic challenge for the Steelers’ defense and so the offense is going to have to pull its weight this week.
If you don’t want to miss this week’s game, we have you covered.
Here is everything you need to know so you can watch, listen to or stream this week’s Pittsburgh Steelers game. The Steelers are headed out west to take on the struggling Arizona Cardinals in what is essentially a playoff game for Pittsburgh. The Steelers are still dealing with injuries on offense but the defense remains elite.
You can also follow the game with us @TheSteelersWire and of course here on Steelers Wire with our live updates during the game, along with highlights of all the key moments from this week’s game. Join us straight after the final whistle for more in-depth coverage, injury updates, and analysis of all the action.
The Cardinals defense has struggled all season and the Steelers offense should take advantage of that.
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The playoffs don’t start for a month but for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the season has been single elimination for the last several weeks. Pittsburgh has taken the one game at a time mantra to heart and has kept their focus during this 6-1 run they are on. This week the Steelers get the Arizona Cardinals who were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs last week and sit at 3-8-1.
There was a time when playing a bad team on the road was scary because the Steelers didn’t hesitate to play down to their opponents. But this isn’t the case this season, especially on defense. Here are three reasons the Steelers will not lose to the Cardinals this week.
The Cardinals defense can’t stop anyone
Arizona is currently ranked No. 31 in points allowed (29.2) and No. 32 in yards allowed (426.3) per game. Pittsburgh hasn’t had a 300-yard passer yet this season but if there was ever a week to do it, this would be it. The Steelers offense will be a concern for the remainder of the season but this week Pittsburgh should feast on the Cardinals D.
Here’s our comprehensive guide to this week’s guide.
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Steeler Nation doesn’t just reside in the surrounding areas of Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. It is a world-wide army that lives and dies with the team that calls Pittsburgh it’s home. This is the preview that all fans of the black and gold come to find everything they need to know about the Steelers and their upcoming opponent! Mike Drakulich (@PghSportsNation) of Steelers Wire brings you inside the huddle for both teams, providing a weekly game story, the Steelers keys to winning, score prediction, fantasy football advice, game day information, a detailed breakdown of each team, including individual stats, team stats, and team injury reports. Heck, you’ll even know the weather at kickoff. The only thing you’re missing is a game uniform.
Duck and the Steelers head west for a home game vs Kyler Murray and the Cardinals
As I sat scouting the Arizona Cardinals earlier today, Tom Petty’s ‘I Won’t Back Down’ started playing on Alexa.
Fitting song for both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Devlin “Duck” Hodges.
Minus a future HOF quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger and DE Stephon Tuitt for the season, as well as starters James Conner, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Maurkice Pouncey for multiple games in 2019– all of whom are Pro Bowl players, the Steelers just keep defying the odds and keep finding ways to win games.
After starting the season 0-3, Pittsburgh has battled back to find itself in the #6 seed slot in the AFC playoffs, winning seven out their last nine to enter week 14 with a 7-5 record.
As for The Duck?
“If you’d have asked me five or six years ago when I first got the name, I’d have thought this is wild, a quarterback named Duck, but now it’s cool,” Hodges said Wednesday after practice.
All the undrafted free agent from FCS Samford has done is win his first two games as a starter, and should’ve had credit for leading the Steelers to an overtime victory over the Baltimore Ravens when he made his NFL debut, but a Smith-Schuster fumble in Ravens territory stole defeat from the jaws of victory.
“It’s something that has caught on, something I’ve kind of embraced,” Hodges said of his nickname. “It’s awesome to have the fans come up and say, ‘Hey, Duck, what’s up?’ When people call me Devlin, it catches me by surprise. ‘Do you know me that good?’ It’s cool. It’s unique and fits who I am.”
Hodges may be humble off the field, but his swagger and poise in the pocket was a big reason Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin made the switch from Mason Rudolph, who’s play had deteriorated since Pittsburgh defeated the Rams back in week 10.
Steeler Nation is crazy with Duckmania, as are his teammates and coaches, who have the utmost confidence in their rookie teammate under center.
“I thought he played his tail off,” Tomlin said. “Without over-analyzing it, just a general synopsis, I thought he played his tail off.”
With each throw and each series completed by Hodges, Tomlin likes what he sees.
“I had more confidence in him this week than I did against the Chargers because our relationship is born out of our shared experiences,” Tomlin said. “We had the experience of what he did in the Chargers game in our back pocket and that probably produced Sunday.”
Despite the hype and the sudden stardom, Hodges remains true to himself.
“It goes back to who I am, being the person I am,” he said. “I’m a laid-back guy. I like to come in each and every day and be prepared and have fun. This is football. It’s my job, but at the same time there’s a good balance to have between having fun and getting prepared for the game.”
Like his game against the LA Chargers, which technically was a road start for Hodges and Pittsburgh, as about 70% of Dignity Health Sports Park was represented by those in black and gold, this week at Arizona will look like Hodges 3rd home start, as State Farm Stadium is expected to be overwhelmed by Steeler Nation.
It will likely be Kyler Murray having trouble yelling out snap counts and audibles, than when Hodges goes under center.
Every bit helps, as the Heisman winner from a year ago, is having a solid rookie campaign.
Expect the Steelers defense to bring the heat, and to utilize their height to neutralize the 5’10 quarterback of the Cardinals.
“I think with our pressure up front, he’s got to throw over us,” defensive captain Cameron Heyward said. “He’s not going to be able to see his targets, that’s what we’re hoping for. He buys time to make things happen.”
On paper, it looks like a bad day for Murray, who has been sacked 41 times this season. The Steelers defense has recorded 43 sacks, good for 3rd in the NFL.
Defensive coordinator Keith Butler will be devising a game plan to keep the rookie on his toes and very uncomfortable.
“You have to change it up,” Butler said. “You can’t always attack the quarterback. You can’t always sit back and wait for the quarterback to come to you. You have to change it up. You’ve got to throw him some fastballs at times, and you’ve got to throw him some curves.”
If the Pittsburgh defense is able to keep Murray under wraps this Sunday, they will likely be looking at an 8-5 record and the possibility of catching the Buffalo Bills for the #5 seed.
But first things first…
“The kid is very smart, and he does a lot of good things for them,” Butler said of Murray. “I see why they took him.”
Steelers key’s to winning
Keep Kyler Murray in the pocket! Quite simple, really. Bottle Murray up and get to him early and often, as Arizona has allowed 41 sacks in 2019.
Keep big pass plays to a minimum! The Cardinals have some talent in their offense, including a certain Hall of Famer to be in Larry Fitzgerald, well known to Pittsburgh fans during his days at Pitt. Charlie Kirk, KeeSean Johnson, and Pharoh Cooper have all shown signs of brilliance this year.
We are hungry for Benny Snell Football! Regardless if James Conner returns this season, Snell should get the nod till he proves he can’t handle the load. He gets stronger as the game goes on and needs to be a factor this Sunday in Glendale.
Keep Ducking away… Duck Hodges is making good decisions, knowing when to attack downfield, and when to take what’s given. His poise and confidence has elevated this entire offense. He has a good chance at putting up some numbers against Arizona’s poor defense.
Every week the Pittsburgh Steelers make adjustments to their 53-man roster and whether it is injuries or something else, the Pittsburgh roster is always in a state of flux. This week the changes were minimal but here’s your update sorted by jersey number ahead of their game with the Arizona Cardinals.
The Steelers will be without their top running back again this week.
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Despite getting some practice reps in this week, Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner will miss another week with his ongoing shoulder injury. The Steelers take on the Arizona Cardinals this week on the road.
Conner told the press he won’t play on Sunday but the team’s official game status report will come out on Friday.
James Conner said he will not play Sunday at Arizona.
This season has been a wash for Conner after making the Pro Bowl last year. Conner only has 390 rushing yards for the season and this will be his fifth missed game of the year.
With Conner out again, it will be a heavy dose of Benny Snell Jr. and Jaylen Samuels powering the run game. The entire Steelers offense has struggled this season but with games against the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens coming up, it would be better to have a 100 percent Conner in those games.
