MNF: Steelers Perspective

Players to Watch

WR Mike Wallace - Averaging an NFL best 23.4 yards per catch, it is safe to say that Wallace is a home run hitter. Wallace is unbelievably fast and looks similar to WR DeSean Jackson. The 6'0" 199 lbs. receiver will be matched up against two great corners tonight, so his play making ability will really be tested.

RB Rashard Mendenhall - Look for Mendenhall to have a big game against a Bengals defense that is allowing 4.5 yards per carry. Mendenhall has struggled of late, but he should be able to take advantage of the banged up defense of the Bengals.

Lawrence Timmons - On a team filled with big name players on defense like James Harrison, Troy Polamalu,and LaMarr Woodley, Timmons is the forgotten man. In his third season, Timmons has really turned it on leading the team in tackles, and adding 3 sacks and an interception. Look for Timmons to continue to make plays tonight.

Key Matchup: Steelers Secondary vs Bengals Receiving Core - The one area that the Steelers are weak, is their pass defense which ranks 25th in the NFL. The Bengals biggest strength is the amount of weapons in their passing game. The one reason Steelers can come out on top of this match-up, however, is because of QB Carson Palmer. Palmer has been pretty bad this year. He has thrown some costly interceptions and has struggled on third downs (49 percent completion rate, 431 yards, 62 rating - Bill Simmons). With the Steelers ability to stuff the run, Palmer should be faced with a lot of third and longs, which is exactly what Troy Polamalu and the Steelers defense, which already has 10 interceptions, wants to see.

Why the Steelers Will Win: Ben Roethlisberger will have time to find the right guy. Roethlisberger is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL at buying time going through multiple reads and finding the right receiver. The Bengals this year have had a very hard time of getting after the opposing teams quarterback (last in the NFL with 6 sacks), so Roethlisberger should have plenty of time to sit back and do what he does best. Roethlisberger with time + Mendenhall + defense creating havoc = easy win for the Steelers.

Prediction: Steelers 31 Bengals 13

Surprises and Rookie Spotlight

Three Surprises:

1. The Packers lost against the Bears- The Packers literally did everything they could to hand the game to the Bears. The Bears did do a great job stopping the run, but the Packers had 17 penalties, and played very sloppily. They could have easily had 3 or 4 interceptions against Jay Cutler, and Aaron Rodgers completed 76% of his passes for 316 yards and yet they only put up 17 points. I think this was just a bad game for the Packers, I still see them as super bowl contenders, and Aaron Rodgers looked pretty good.

2. Pittsburgh is 3-0- The Steelers have been able to win three games without starting QB Ben Roethlisberger, and they have beaten some pretty good teams already: Falcons, Titans and Buccaneers. They have been able to do it because their defense has been nasty. The Steelers are one team I would not want to play at all especially with Roethlisberger coming back in 2 weeks. Look out for WR Mike Wallace, he is ridiculously fast, he averaged 19+ yards per catch last year, and is averaging 26+ per catch this season.

3. Jay Cutler and Mark Sanchez playing well – Two guys that I had given up on are looking pretty good. Cutler looks better, but I think much of Cutler’s success can be contributed to the offense under Mike Martz and RB Matt Forte. Mike Martz offense’s seem to always put up good numbers, and Forte, who is the leading receiver, has helped Cutler by averaging 12.9 yards after the catch. He still seems to throw the ball off his back foot and force balls so I’m not completely sold on him. Sanchez has looked very good he is making good decisions and getting the ball out quick. Will see if he can keep it up.

Rookie Spotlight

3 Stars

Earl Thomas – Had his first 2 interceptions of his career in the Seahawks win against San Diego, looks like the next Bob Sanders (hopefully he can stay healthy though).

2 Stars

C.J. Spiller – Had a 95 yard kickoff return and a receiving touchdown, he showed that he can run by people in the chances he has been given.

1 Star

Dexter McCluster – McCluster had a big touchdown, and has helped the Chiefs start off 3-0. I was shocked when McCluster ran a 4.5+ in the 40 at the combine, he is really fast, he is one of those guys that gets faster when he puts on the pads.