PITTSBURGH (vs Kansas City)
The Steelers got rolled in Philadelphia, and that doesn't happen very often. Just four other times in the last five years, in fact, have they lost a game by 20 points. Each time, they came back and won the following week, usually in convincing fashion.
| Steelers after 20-pt losses | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Opp | Score | Next Week? |
| 2011 | Balt. | L, 35-7 | W, 24-0 (Sea.) |
| 2013 | N.E. | L, 55-31 | W, 23-10 (Buff.) |
| 2014 | Balt. | L, 26-6 | W, 37-19 (Car. |
| 2014 | Clev. | L, 31-10 | W, 30-23 (Hou.) |
| 2016 | Phil. | L, 34-3 | ? |
LeVeon Bell returns from suspension, and after waiting three weeks to use him in a lineup, would you really consider sitting him down for this one? Mike Tomlin says he's pleased with Bell's conditioning and that "you'll see a lot of him on Sunday." We have a blueprint for Bell's first game back from suspension: last year, when he sat out the first two games and returned in Week 3 to carry 19 times for 62 yards and a touchdown and catch 7 passes for 70 more. DeAngelo Williams made the switch even easier by totaling just 44 yards in the blowout loss at Philadelphia. It should be Bell most of the time, Williams when he needs a breather. Kansas City ranks just 24th in run defense, with San Diego going for 155 and 2 TDs and the Jets going for 117 (despite losing badly). Houston went for only 97, but hasn't run ...
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... the ball particularly well in any of its games. Above-average matchup, and of course Bell is such a big part of the passing game that it almost doesn't matter. Last year he caught 22 passes in his five full games, including 7 in the one Ben Roethlisberger started. Bell rushed for 121 yards and caught 4 passes for 16 more in a 23-13 loss at Kansas City last season. Just 63 yards but he scored in a 20-12 home win the previous year. ... Nothing went right for Ben Roethlisberger and company in last week's loss at Philadelphia. Receivers got hurt and dropped passes, and the Eagles stuck them in a big hole. Philadelphia's defense, too, was better than expected. Kansas City doesn't have much of a pass (3 sacks). It leads the league with 8 interceptions, but it had a ton of help from Ryan Fitzpatrick last week. It ranked 10th in pass defense a year ago and that's where it sits right now; it's an above-average secondary with some sticky fingers. Below-average situation for Roethlisberger, and he'll probably finish with average to slightly below-average numbers. He's currently at 272 yards and 2 TDs per game; around 240-250 and 1-2 TDs looks right. Better matchup for the ground game. He was down at 220 and 1 in the win two years ago, missing last year's contest due to injury (Landry Jones threw for 209 yards and 1 TD). ... It's a tough matchup for Antonio Brown, but tough to slot many players ahead of him. He's cleared 126 yards in two of three (and did so last week with Pittsburgh getting blown out). Kansas City has an excellent secondary, holding the Jets' solid trio to 95 yards combined last week. But Brandon Marshall was playing hurt and Ryan Fitzpatrick was throwing up junk for much of that game. Keenan Allen was doing just fine (6 for 63 in the first half) before getting hurt in the opener, and DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller both went over 100 yards in Week 2; Hopkins scored. Things get tricky after Brown. Eli Rogers has a toe injury and looks unlikely to play; we're proceeding as if he'll sit out, making Markus Wheaton and Sammie Coates the other main wideouts. Wheaton started last week, dropped a couple of passes, and was benched for a large portion of the game (until Rogers got hurt). Coates ended up playing two-thirds of the snaps, compared to just 45 percent for Wheaton. Coates has cleared 50 yards in every game but caught only 7 passes. Wheaton (assuming he's out of the doghouse) will probably be on the field more, but Coates is the better big-play candidate. Given the matchup, neither looks likely to have a big game. The Hopkins score is the only touchdown by a wide receiver against Kansas City. Brown caught 6 balls for 124 yards last year while Martavis Bryant scored. Browns scored in the 2014 game. ... Jesse James is out there close to full-time but not making a huge impact: 10 catches for 70 yards and 1 TD. Heath Miller didn't catch a pass in the game last season; 7 for 68 the previous year. No touchdowns by tight ends against this defense yet. ... Chris Boswell averages just 6 kicking points so far, but the matchup looks solid. Kansas City allowed 9 and 13 kicking points its first two games. Just 3 last week, but assuming Ben Roethlisberger doesn't start chucking end-zone interceptions, Boswell should get a few chances. He had 8 and 7 points the last two years. ... The Steelers Defense has potential. Alex Smith routinely takes 3 sacks per game, content to lose some yards rather than turning it over. Just 1 interception so far, but he's lost 2 fumbles. Pittsburgh looks good for 2-3 sacks, although it's unlikely to get more than 1 turnover. Smith took 2 sacks and didn't turn it over in the home win last year, but was sacked 6 times at Pittsburgh in the 2014 loss.