Lost in the shuffle, Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger eclipses 60k passing yards

Ben Roethlisberger is only the seventh QB in NFL history to throw for more than 60,000 yards.

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There is very little good to come from the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night. It was a miserable effort by the Steelers and the loss extends their current losing streak to three games.

But there was one bit of good to come out of the game that will be completely overshadowed due to the loss. With 170 passing yards, Steelers quarterback became only the seventh quarterback in NFL history to throw for more than 60,000 yards in a career.

Roethlisberger joins names like Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees with this distinction. Roethlisberger currently sits No. 7 in NFL history in career passing yards with 60,007.

When Roethlisberger retires he will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer but unfortunately, much of what has made him arguably the best quarterback in franchise history is being missed during the team’s current struggles. Roethlisberger is currently in his 17th NFL season and holds every Steelers passing record.

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Lack of depth on Steelers defense shows in snap counts

Steelers Wire takes a look at the defensive snap counts for Pittsburgh from Monday.

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Injuries have decimated the Pittsburgh Steelers defense this season. This has proven especially problematic for the Pittsburgh linebackers as only one of the four Week One starters were on the field Monday for the Steelers. But overall the depth of this team on defense isn’t great and the snap counts from Monday’s game really show it.

Here are the snap counts. The Steelers played 56 defensive snaps on Monday.

LB Marcus Allen-100%

CB Joe Haden-100%

CB Steven Nelson-100%

FS Minkah Fitzpatrick-100%

LB Alex Highsmith-95%

LB T.J. Watt-95%

LB Avery Williamson-91%

DT Cam Heyward-89%

DE Stephon Tuitt-88%

SS Terrell Edmunds-79%

DT Tyson Alualu-54%

CB Mike Hilton-50%

CB Cam Sutton-38%

LB Ola Adeniyi-11%

DL Chris Wormley-5%

DT Carlos Davis-4%

DE Henry Mondeaux-2%

A few things stand out here. First, depth at linebacker doesn’t exist. Seeing guys like Highsmith, Williamson and Allen playing such high reps just gives you an idea of how thin this group has been stretched. Get well soon, Vince Williams.

Also, the dramatic dropoff from the top 10 guys is remarkable. It really illustrates how unimaginative the Steelers were on defense Monday night and how little they played sub-package defense. Seeing Hilton, arguably the team’s second-best defensive back with only 28 defensive snaps is brutal because he’s an exceptional run defender.

Let us know in the comments what are your takeaways from the Steelers snap counts from Monday night’s loss.

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Steelers HC Mike Tomlin hopes his team isn’t confident after loss

Mike Tomlin calls out his team after their loss to the Bengals.

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It feels like we have said this every week for a month but the Pittsburgh Steelers had their worst performance of the season against the Cincinnati Bengals. Pittsburgh lost 27-17 but based on how the Steelers played, it really wasn’t as close as the score.

After the game, head coach Mike Tomlin was remarkably calm given how poor the game went but wanted to be sure where he stood about the team’s confidence. “We better not be confident after a performance like that,” Tomlin said.

The problem with this team is they still are confident and this is dangerous. Pittsburgh has two games to play before the playoffs and while it feels like this team is defeated in many areas they don’t come across as humble about it. Tomlin and his coaches aren’t doing their jobs if the Steelers walk back into the facilities this week with a pep in their step someone needs to remind them just how bad they have looked this last month.

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Steelers vs Bengals: 3 big takeaways from the loss

Everything went wrong for the Steelers on Monday night against the Bengals.

The Pittsburgh Steelers fell to 11-3 on Monday night after their 27-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Pittsburgh had a chance to lock up the AFC North with a win but instead will go into the final two games of the regular season in a race with the Cleveland Browns for what will likely end up the No. 3 seed in the AFC.

Here are our big takeaways from the loss.

Steelers TE Eric Ebron, LB Ulysees Gilbert questionable to return

The injuries are really piling up for the Steelers.

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To add insult to injury, literally, the Pittsburgh Steelers look to be even more shorthanded in the second half against the Cincinnati Bengals. First it was fullback Derek Watt who left the game with a concussion and now starting tight end Eric Ebron and backup linebacker Ulysees Gilbert are both questionable to return with injuries of their own.

The Steelers trail the Bengals 17-0 at halftime.

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Watch Steelers WR JuJu Smith-Schuster get rocked by Bengals S Vonn Bell

Vonn Bell got a little payback on JuJu Smith-Schuster early in the game.

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Earlier in the week, Cincinnati Bengals safety Vonn Bell made it clear he found the TikTok dances Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster does pregame on the opponent’s logo. He also noted that someone needed to hit Smith-Schuster and let him know about it.

This is exactly what Bell did in the second quarter. Smith-Schuster took a catch at midfield and got absolutely rocked by Bell, forcing a fumble and giving the football back to Cincinnati.

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Steelers FB Derek Watt questionable to return with possible concussion

The Steelers have lost fullback Derek Watt with a possible concussion.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers announced that fullback Derek Watt is questionable to return as he headed to the locker room with a possible concussion. Watt went down after he took a knee to the head while covering a punt in the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals.

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Steelers vs Bengals inactives: James Conner inactive this week

James Conner is inactive this week for the Steelers along with guard Kevin Dotson.

The Pittsburgh Steelers announced their inactives for this week’s game versus the Cincinnati Bengals. Here is the full list according to the team.

QB Joshua Dobbs

RB James Conner

SS Antoine Brooks

DT Isaiah Buggs

LB Cassius Marsh

G Kevin Dotson

The big names on this list are Conner and Dotson. Conner once again has shown this season that despite his talent, his ability to stay healthy enough to contribute the rest of it doesn’t matter.

Dotson’s absence along with Matt Feiler on IR means J.C. Hassenauer is getting the start at left guard. Hassenauer is typically the reserve center but is getting pressed into starting duty versus the Bengals.

Here are the Bengals’ inactives for this week’s game.

Brandon Allen QB

Randy Bullock K

Logan Wilson LB

Alex Redmond OG

Keaton Sutherland OG

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Steelers announce multiple roster moves ahead of Monday Night Football rumble

Pittsburgh made some roster moves ahead of the MNF matchup in Cincinnati.

With the offensive line decimated by injuries, the Pittsburgh Steelers were forced to make a few roster moves ahead of their Monday Night Football matchup in Cincinnati.

Guard Danny Isidora, signed from the Kansas City Chiefs practice squad last week, has been activated to the 53-man roster.

Isidora was a fifth-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in 2017 and has played in 25 games (six starts) in four seasons.

Pittsburgh also elevated linebacker Tegray Scales to the active/inactive roster from the practice squad. Signed on Nov. 11, Scales was first elevated for the Buffalo Bills game, in which he played in three special teams snaps.

Tight end Kevin Rader was released but could be re-signed to the practice squad if he clears waivers.

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