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Pittsburgh Steelers: Jacksonville’s defense is a major test for Ben Roethlisberger

By Noah Strackbein

BALTIMORE, MD - OCTOBER 01: Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers throws a pass in the second quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on October 1, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - OCTOBER 01: Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers throws a pass in the second quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on October 1, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /
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The Jacksonville Jaguars have one of the best defenses in the NFL, and for the Pittsburgh Steelers, that’s a major test.

While the Steelers’ offense looks unstoppable on paper, they’re yet to really dominate a game this season. Le’Veon Bell’s breakout game in Baltimore added another dimension of this offense Pittsburgh was waiting for all season, but realistically, they aren’t meeting the standard set for them this season.

Antonio Brown, Martavis Bryant, Eli Rogers and Juju Smith-Schuster are arguably the best receiving core in the league. The weapons Ben Roethlisberger has around him should allow him to have one of the best seasons of his career, but so far, that hasn’t been the case.

Jacksonville’s pass defense has only allowed 147 yards per game to opposing QBs. With Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye only allowing a combined 29.3 QBR through four games, Roethlisberger has an extremely tough challenge on his hands.

Week 5 could go one of two ways for Big Ben – One, he breaks out and decides it’s finally time to test his receivers and start forcing the deep ball. Or two, Jacksonville’s secondary gains the upper hand early and Pittsburgh turns to the run game again.

Roethlisberger’s conservative approach has worked so far, but only to a degree. His ability to protect the ball this season has been enough to keep the Steelers offense afloat so far. Against teams the Steelers should’ve beaten, this approach has and will continue to give the Steelers the upper hand. But versus tougher teams, especially in the AFC, playing conservative will keep games close.

Jacksonville is the perfect test for this explosive pass game. It’s a strong defense with some solid secondary members, but overall not talented enough to beat the Steelers. Therefore, if Ben isn’t able to get it going in the first half, Pittsburgh can turn to their defense and run game to keep control of the outcome.

No one should expect Bell to run the ball 35 times again. Five weeks into the season, Pittsburgh shouldn’t be pushing the limits of the running back they’ll need in the postseason. If need be, though, handing the ball to No. 26 20-25 times could be a solution to an unreliable passing attack.

Jacksonville could shut down Roethlisberger and still not gain the upper hand. This is the type of game where the Steelers need to figure out their remaining issues, and the biggest one is the passing game.

Next: Jags could be another ground game for Steelers

So, let Big Ben try to figure out the chemistry with his receivers. Against a tough pass defense, it’s the perfect time to prove he can scorch some of the best secondaries in the league, and if he can’t, hand the ball to Bell and let the rest of this team win again. Either way, it looks like Pittsburgh should come out of this one 4-1.

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