Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 bright spots in a bad loss to Oakland

OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 09: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers scores a touchdown dragging Gareon Conley #21 of the Oakland Raiders in to the endzone in the fourth quarter of their NFL football game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 9, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 09: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers scores a touchdown dragging Gareon Conley #21 of the Oakland Raiders in to the endzone in the fourth quarter of their NFL football game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 9, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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DENVER, CO – NOVEMBER 25: Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers plays the Denver Broncos at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on November 25, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – NOVEMBER 25: Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers plays the Denver Broncos at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on November 25, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

Ben Roethlisberger

There are other things that are clear. Another thing is that this Steelers offense is lost without Ben Roethlisberger at the helm.

Ben made some poor throws today. Almost all of his games leave you with some throws that you wonder what in the world was he thinking or maybe he had been eating that same popcorn Brucie ate from Adam Sandler’s rendition of The Longest Yard. But watching this offense struggle so much against a bad Raiders defense with Dobbs running the offense made every Steelers fan pine for the future hall-of-famer.

Outside of a couple poor throws, Ben was highly efficient and ran the offense well. He only threw four incomplete passes all game and got the team in position for points on all but one possession.

Who knows what the coaching staff was thinking when Ben stood on the sideline for about an entire quarter sporting a cap instead of a helmet on the field. Maybe the rib injury he suffered is more severe than they will admit, but it shouldn’t have taken four terrible series with Dobbs and Oakland’s taking back the lead to send him back out there.

As I said in an earlier article, the Steelers will go only as far as Ben will take them. As long as the defense doesn’t get in the way.