Steelers stumble in Week 5 power rankings

The Pittsburgh Steelers lost a heart-breaker in overtime last week to the Baltimore Ravens thanks to some awful kicking and questionable play-calling. So, it should come as no surprise that they have taken a tumble in the weekly NFL power rankings around the internet.

Let’s take a tour of the major sites and see where the Steelers rank compared to the rest of the league.

NFL.com: #13 (-4)

“Mixed reviews regarding Mike Vick on Thursday night. Some felt the vet fared well, while others thought he was terrible (mostly due to the throw on fourth down). The answer probably lies somewhere in between…”

Fansided: #16 (-6)

“Pittsburgh may very well have the best offense on paper when everyone is healthy and full-go, but with Big Ben out, that is simply not the case…”

ESPN: #10 (-2)

“Since 2004, the Steelers are 1-7 against the Ravens when Ben Roethlisberger doesn’t start (9-2 vs. all other teams).”

USA Today: #12 (no change)

“Some casualties last week, including Josh Scobee and Antonio Brown’s 35-game streak of 50-yard games. Overall, they’re fine.”

Fox Sports: #13 (no change)

“The Steelers have taken positive steps forward in every game on defense, and they will need to rely on this unit more until Ben Roethlisberger returns.”

Yahoo Sports: #12 (-3)

“It will be interesting to see if Michael Vick throws the ball downfield more, or if the play-calling allows it. It’s really hard to win in the NFL when you have no downfield passing game.”

SB Nation: #9 (-1)

CBS Sports: #9 (-3)

“It’s tough to win games without Ben Roethlisberger. But they blew one big time against the Ravens.”

What I see here is some obligatory shots at Vick, but it really could have been a whole lot worse because Pittsburgh looked atrocious at times against Baltimore. However, most of the media is being pretty reasonable. It was a short week and a must-win situation for their worst rivals. Winning would have been pure gravy as far as I’m concerned.

One thing that really jumped out at me during the limited preseason action we saw from Vick was his connection with Martavis Bryant. Vick has yet to establish a rapport with Antonio Brown, but he clicked instantly with Bryant, who is returning this week from his suspension.

If Pittsburgh can come away with a win on Monday night we know that they can hold serve with Ben Roethlisberger out. Stay tuned.

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