Steelers vs. Raiders: Winners and losers from week 2 loss

The Steelers couldn’t keep up their week one success, and here are the winners and losers from their week two loss to the Raiders.

While the Steelers kept the game close early on, a sluggish offense and a plethora of defensive injuries led to the team’s first loss of the season. While some individuals did shine, others struggled to make much of an impact.

The defense fell apart in the second half while the offense continued to look slow and uninspiring. Overall, it was an ugly game for the team. Here are the three winners and three losers from the Steelers loss to the Raiders.

Steelers winner: Pat Freiermuth

While the Steelers’ offense as a whole looked bad, one of the few shining spots was a rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth.

He was active on the offense last week, playing the most snaps out of all of the tight ends on the team, and his lone catch displayed all of the physical traits that he showcased while at Penn State. While his blocking wasn’t perfect, he looked like a player that could turn into one of the better all-around tight ends in the league.

He followed up his strong start with yet another one this week. While it will be a few days before the snap counts are released, one has to think that he once again out-snapped the other tight ends by a comfortable margin.

As well, he became a safety valve in the passing game and proved to be a reliable target, catching four passes for 36 yards. It was a strong showing from the rookie, and everyone should expect to see him out on the field more as the season progresses.