Steelers week 6: what to watch

The Steelers are still riding high after a nail-biting win against the San Diego Chargers on Monday night. This week, they face the stout Arizona Cardinals in Pittsburgh. Barring supernatural intervention, the Steelers will have a tough game on Sunday. Here’s what to watch.

The hits keep coming. Something we’ve been watching for week after week is the ability for backup players to maintain the Steelers’ standard for excellence. That won’t stop this week. While playmakers like Ben Roethlisberger and Ryan Shazier remain sidelined for the third and fourth week, respectively, newly injured safety Will Allen will be out too.

On top of those injuries, news broke this week that center Maurkice Pouncey‘s stay on the injury report might last the balance of the year. Pouncey had complications with his ankle that required additional surgery. His return is in doubt for the 2015 season.

While the number of impact players on the sideline is certainly a handicap to the Steelers, it cannot be used as an excuse. It is up to the healthy players to do what is necessary to win. They escaped with a win in St. Louis and have been 1-1 since. If the Steelers go .500 without Ben Roethlisberger, that can probably be seen as a win. That’s far from guaranteed.

The Cardinals are a tough matchup, Ben or no Ben. Vick has struggled against worse defenses than the Cardinals. All eyes will be on the former NFL superstar. The Cardinals are opportunistic and aggressive, poor attributes for a backup quarterback in a new system. This is a game you feel like Michael Vick can go in and lose.

That being said, Vick showed some of his classic playmaking ability in a fourth quarter comeback on Monday Night Football. If he can play loose like he did late against the Chargers, then he could make things interesting.

If the last play of the Steelers’ game last week showed anything, it was that Mike Tomlin is willing to put the ball in Le’Veon Bell‘s hands to win football games. That might continue to be the game plan against the Cardinals, but it will be a tall one considering their formidable defense.

With Ben out Bell is the thing to watch on offense. Antonio Brown has all the talent in the world but without a quarterback to get him the ball, he can’t make plays.

Outside of Bell, it is a surprising defense that’s worth keeping an eye on. After losing several key veterans over the past several years, many had written off the Steelers’ defense at the start of this year. While they haven’t been world beaters, the young defense has impressed with quarterback pressure and opportunistic play.

It will take more than a few big defensive plays to get the Steelers past the Cardinals this Sunday. That and a monster game from Bell.

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