BTSC Week 7 Game Ball Goes To...

The Pittsburgh Steelers notched their third consecutive win of the season on Sunday by easily handling the Arizona Cardinals 32-20 in Phoenix. Well, it wasn't 'easy', nothing is in the NFL, but the Steelers played soundly in all three phases of the game in the win over Steelers West. Time to hand out my weekly game ball for the one guy I thought played the most important role in helping the team emerge victorious. 

To the contenders: 

• LaMarr Woodley: 2 sacks, 1 safety, 7 tackles (6 solo)
• Antonio Brown: 7 receptions, 102 yards, 23.5 yards per punt return
• Ben Roethlisberger: 26-of-39 , 361 yards, 3 TDs, 121.8 QB rating
• Shaun Suisham: 3-of-3 FGs (41, 42, 39)  

Lots of other guys who deserve a shout out, and I'll do just that here in a separate post, but for my money Ben Roethlisberger has to get the nod for the first time this season here in our fictitious BTSC game ball giveaway. 

I thought Roethlisberger was even better against Arizona than he was against the Titans when he threw five touchdowns in Pittsburgh's 38-17 Week 5 win over Tennessee. He picked the right time to take chances down the field, and did so in a way that wasn't overly risky, he dumped the ball off to his outlet options at the right times, and he was exceptionally accurate on a number of key throws. A really nice performance for him despite, once again, being under considerable duress in the pocket. 

Roethlisberger now has 9 touchdowns and just 1 interception during the Steelers' three-game winning streak. His quarterback rating has risen to 95.3 after the slow start to the season.