The Pittsburgh Steelers had some star performers against the Green Bay Packers Sunday at Heinz Field, but for every star performer was a dud to accompany it. Pro Football Focus released their grades after the Steelers' victory and it is time to see who were top performers, and who was below the line in terms of performance.
On the offensive side of the ball, the best performer of the game was none other than QB Ben Roethlisberger with a +1.9 grade. Roethlisberger did see limited snaps, but performed well when he was given the chance by going 11-14 for 100 yards and a touchdown. Following Roethlisberger on the positive rankings were Ramon Foster (+1.8), Maurkice Poucey (+1.3), Shakim Phillips (+1.3), Tyler Murphy (+1.3) and Kelvin Beachum (+1.2).
However, not all reports from the offense were good. Guard turned center Chris Hubbard was the lowest rated player with a -5.6 rating. Hubbard proved the transition from guard to center is not an easy one as he was repeatedly beaten in pass protection, and failed to open holes in the running game. He wasn't alone with the negative rankings though. Landry Jones (-3.7), Alejandro Villanueva (-3.2), Sammie Coates (-2.7) and Roosevelt Nix (-2.2) rounded out the superstars of the negative rankings.
Defensively, it was rookie Doran Grant who highlighted the positive grades with a +2.3 rating. Grant contributed both in special teams and in 11 on 11 play in the second half to give himself the highest defensive grade on Sunday. Joining Grant as the highest rated players were L.J. Fort (+1.5), Jarvis Jones (+1.4), Daniel McCullers (+1.4) and Terence Garvin (+1.3).
Negative defensive ratings abounded Sean Spence being the worst rated player with a -3.3 rating. Stephon Tuitt and Antwon Blake both joined Spence on the wrong side of the ratings with -1.7 grades, and Cam Thomas (-1.3) and Shayon Green (-1.2) also had negative marks, per PFF.
Grades are difficult to give out during the preseason as players aren't playing a full complement of plays, and the competition level changes depending on the opposition, etc. Despite the individual grades, the team grades for the Steelers might not have been perfect, but were good enough to put a win on the board Sunday for the first time this preseason.