Steelers Mike Wallace says he struggled to shake off first drop

Perhaps recognition is the first step toward recovery.

In the case of Steelers wide receiver Mike Wallace, he's admitting he took his eyes off the first pass he dropped in the Steelers' 24-17 win over Cincinnati in Week 7.

After that, also in his own words, he had a tough time shaking it off.

Wallace had, in some respects, his worst game as a pro. He still caught eight passes, but on 17 targets, having dropped three of them.

Wallace has 29 catches on the season, third on the team behind Antonio Brown (38) and Heath Miller (31). His four touchdowns are second behind Miller for the team lead, and his 13.7 yards per catch is first among wide receivers.

It's just not the standard the league is used to from Wallace, although he factored quite heavily into the Steelers' offensive game plan against Cincinnati.

He's got an even bigger advantage Sunday against Washington, a team giving up multiple big plays each week. With an outstanding running game pacing the Redskins to a 3-4 record despite a sagging defense, logic would indicate Wallace is going to get a shot or two deep down the field.

The questions is when?

The Steelers will want to control the tempo of the game, and likely will focus much of it around Brown and Miller, but it would make sense to send Wallace deep early to see how Washington is planning to defend him.

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