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The entirety of the Pittsburgh Steelers season rests on the surgically-repaired shoulder of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers nearly made the playoffs last season with miserable quarterback play so you have to be looking at a return of Roethlisberger as a return to the playoffs after a two-season absence.
Our friends over at Touchdown Wire put out their summer NFL power rankings and they have the Steelers checking in at No. 13. Here’s what they had to say about Pittsburgh.
Last season, with Ben Roethlisberger missing all but 95 snaps with an elbow injury, the Steelers managed an 8-8 record despite the NFL’s worst quarterback situation. How? With a ferocious defense that led the NFL in pressure rate, generating quarterback pressure on 30.5% of its snaps. In addition, only the Patriots picked off more passes than Pittsburgh’s 20, and the early-season trade with the Dolphins for defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick gave the Steelers what they’ve desperately needed since Troy Polamalu’s retirement — a top-ticket free safety who could shut things down in the deep third. One would assume that Roethlisberger, even at age 38 and having threatened retirement multiple times over the last few years, would be able to amass a few more wins with a defense like that, as opposed to whatever it is that Mason Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges did.
With the Steelers elite defense, Pittsburgh doesn’t need Roethlisberger to be as good as he was in 20018. They just need him to bring balance to the offense and take care of the football. There are enough skill players to make his job easier.
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