The Pittsburgh Steelers are a team on the rise. Sure, they have their shortcomings, but after winnings 6 games in-a-row, Pittsburgh is riding high into Week 13 on the wave of momentum.
The Cincinnati Bengals stand in the Steelers’ way of winning 7 straight when they meet in Cincinnati on Monday Night Football, but if you look back at the win against the Packers in Week 12, there are several players whose arrows are certainly pointing up, as Mike Tomlin likes to say.
Looking at the grades and analysis of Pro Football Focus (PFF) after Week 12, it shows several members of the black-and-gold who, if they continue on this current trend, will be major factors for the Steelers down the stretch.
Some despise PFF, and their grading system, but the amount of time spent on film study, combined with the advanced analytics used, PFF provides a great resource for those who want a tangible number grade associated with their favorite team’s players.
With that said, see what PFF had to say about the Steelers who stood out on Sunday Night Football in Week 12:
TOP 5 GRADES:
WR Antonio Brown, 92.0 overall grade
G David DeCastro, 88.5 overall grade
QB Ben Roethlisberger, 84.6 overall grade
DI Stephon Tuitt, 82.8 overall grade
T Chris Hubbard, 81.2 overall grade
PERFORMANCES OF NOTE:
WR ANTONIO BROWN, 92.0 OVERALL GRADE
Antonio Brown was electric for the Steelers on their game winning drive, making a beautiful sideline catch and then catching an out route which put them in field goal range. He was targeted 12 times in the game, catching 10 for 169 yards and two touchdowns. QB Ben Roethlisberger had a perfect passer rating when targeting Brown.
QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER, 84.6 OVERALL GRADE
The Steelers offensive line did a great job throughout the night protecting Roethlisberger in the pocket, he was only under pressure on nine of his 49 drop-backs and he made the Packers defense pay when given time, completing 30-of-40 passes for 248 yards and three touchdowns with a clean pocket. Roethlisberger found success in the intermediate passing game, completing 7-of-13 passes for 124 yards.
DI STEPHON TUITT, 82.8 OVERALL GRADE
Tuitt’s big play came on a strip-sack of Hundley in the first quarter, but unfortunately Pittsburgh was unable to recover, and the play ended up being nullified anyways due to a penalty by Artie Burns. Tuitt added two more pressures in the game, and had a couple stops against the run.
CB MIKE HILTON, 95.4 RUN-DEFENSE GRADE
Hilton was excellent against the run. He had three runs stops on the night, two for no gain and one for a loss. However, he did not grade as well in coverage, as his overpersual on Jamaal Williams’ screen helped spring it for a touchdown, and allowed a first down on the only pass completed into his coverage.