The here and now- what to take away from the colts
The Pittsburgh Steeler's season at this moment can be described as 'neither here or there' with potential talent finally rising to the surface, however the mixture of inexperience and old age on defense is still putting a cap on what this team can achieve. After Sundays mind-blowing victory against the Indianapolis Colts the ship seems to be heading in the right direction going into the second half of the year, with gems being uncovered to back this offense up. Rookie wide-receiver Martavis Bryant showing why he was drafted in the 4th round, to boost a team poor team in the red zone, ranked 31st a couple of weeks ago. I think the rookie provides the 'big play' ability which has been inadequate in the team minus Antonio Brown, with 87 yards and 2 touchdowns the Clemson man seems to be settling in nicely at Heinz Field. Not only was it a good day for wide receivers but Big Ben Roethlisberger who came 20 yards short of breaking the all time passing yards for one game but also showed signs to the critics that him and offensive co-ordinator Todd Haley do have an understanding. For many fans of the Steel City Sunday's game still demonstrated underlying problems, like the entire defence. Apart from a nice play by William Gay to score his interception, the defence still struggles to stop teams completing effective drives consistently. When looking at Andrew Luck who still passed for 400 yards, but with 2 interceptions and a safety there was assurance that the defence could make big plays and create turnovers like past defences before them.1st down yardage and more- how the Steeler's are going to clinch the playoff spot
I refer to the playoffs as 1st down yardage because that's the Steeler's ultimate goal at this time and has been ever since pre-season. For me I feel that with the smart additions brought in through the draft and free agency, people like Lance Moore and Ryan Shazier as well as others, that this team should be achieving a play off spot of some sort. Despite the fact that the AFC North is one of the toughest division's, the Bengals showed severe cracks against the Colts in week 7 where they were shut out. Baltimore can be contained on offense with a mediocre run game however their defence is solid but isn't the best against the pass. The Browns it is down to which team turns up and what mood Brian Hoyer is in. It has become clear that consistency will deliver this team to where they should be come week 16, the Steeler's inconsistency is best displayed through the statistic that the win against the colts was the first consecutive win this season. As well as consistency the defence must stand up especially stopping the run and giving up big plays both evident in the 31-10 loss to the Browns in week 6.To conclude I predict with a tricky finish to the season after the week 12 bye, finishing 8-8 exactly the same as last year despite the differences. Additionally I reckon the Steeler's will fall short narrowly of playoffs once again even though Le'veon Bell will finish with the 4th most rushing yards and Antonio Brown being a top 3 wide receiver both in receptions and yards.
Jordan Bowen
