Pittsburgh Steelers Week 9 Stock Report

It was not the Week 8 the Pittsburgh Steelers had anticipated. The return of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was overshadowed by the season-ending knee injury suffered by running back Le'Veon Bell, and Roethlisberger looked rusty after missing the last three games. As such, the Steelers fell to the visiting Cincinnati Bengals, 16-10.

But Week 9 presents yet another opportunity for the Steelers to turn their 2015 fortunes around. Let's take a look at the players who can help them do that this week and who may harm those chances. Here's the Steelers' stock report for Week 9.

Stock Up: QB Ben Roethlisberger

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"We're closing the chapter on the first half of the season. That's a good thing. We can move on. We don't have to talk about it. There were some negatives in that first half. We can close it, move forward and be our best self going forward now," said Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ray Fittipaldo on Wednesday. "Just close the book and move forward," he added.

This is one reason why Roethlisberger gets a stock-up designation heading into Week 9. He's ready to move on. The other? His Week 8 performance, riddled with mistakes, is not one he's likely to repeat moving forward. 

Roethlisberger was noticeably rusty against the Bengals, completing 28 of his 45 pass attempts for 262 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He was sacked three times and hit six more as he tested out his knee for the first time in a live game since suffering an injury in Week 3.

It was a bad showing, to be sure, but not one bad enough to say that Roethlisberger's stock is trending noticeably downward. If anything, it's heading up, because there's little chance that he continues this slide given his recent history. 

Roethlisberger's Week 8 performance gets a pass because of his four weeks spent on the sideline. This generosity won't continue should he repeat this performance against the Oakland Raiders on Sunday. But, for now, it's hard to imagine Roethlisberger not improving this week. 

Stock Down: WR Martavis Bryant

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Not all of Steelers receiver Martavis Bryant's troubles in Week 8 were his alone. Much had to do with the (aforementioned) rust in the arm of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. As such, Bryant ended Sunday with only four catches for 49 yards on nine targets.

But one thing that did sting was Bryant's dropped touchdown catch, one that could have led to the Steelers defeating the Cincinnati Bengals by one point instead of losing by six. 

Bryant was a standout in Week 6 when he caught six passes on eight targets for 137 yards and two scores, with the majority of the yards and both touchdowns coming when quarterback Mike Vick gave way to Landry Jones. 

He hasn't been much of a factor since, though. While he did have a touchdown grab in Week 7 against the Kansas City Chiefs, he also caught just three of the eight passes thrown his way for 45 yards. He's supposed to be a big-play, stretch-the-field, touchdown-scoring weapon, but instead he's spent more time blending in rather than standing out.

With Roethlisberger's comfort level getting back to normal, Bryant should be more involved in the offense going forward. But Bryant's dropped touchdown looms large over him heading into Week 9.

Stock Up: RB DeAngelo Williams

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With starting Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell suffering a season-ending MCL tear in Week 8, the job now falls to his backup, DeAngelo Williams. And the good news is we know that Williams can handle Bell's workload, based on how he handled starting duties while Bell served a two-game suspension to start the season.

In those two games, Williams rushed 41 times for 204 yards and three touchdowns. And on the season, he has 63 carries for 310 yards and three scores, along with 10 catches for 67 yards. While Williams won't be the same kind of force in the passing game as Bell has been, he's capable of being the team's go-to rusher for the rest of the season.

After Bell suffered a knee injury in Week 17 last year that almost single-handedly doomed the Steelers in the playoffs a week later, it was clear the Steelers needed to have a viable, experienced backup behind him. Williams was the choice, and it was the right one. He should be able to step in yet again and keep Pittsburgh's run game going in Week 9 and beyond.

Stock Down: Team Discipline

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The Steelers went on the road in Week 7 to take on the Kansas City Chiefs and came away fairly clean even though they did suffer a 10-point loss. The team totaled just one penalty in the game, costing it just five yards.

But that same discipline was not in play in Week 8 against the Bengals. The Steelers totaled a season-high 10 penalties for a total of 91 yards. Six of the penalties were against the offense, three against the defense and one on special teams. 

Two of the defensive penalties were post-play personal fouls that gave the Bengals two first downs. And the six offensive penalties set the Steelers back 49 much-needed yards. These kinds of penalty numbers are typical of teams playing on the road; at home, the Steelers simply have no excuse.

It's important to play with discipline, even when tempers flare, because penalties can be costly. They can kill drives on offense or extend opponents' drives when on defense. And on special teams, a penalty can be the difference between having the football at midfield or at a team's own 20-yard line. 

There were numerous reasons why the Steelers lost in Week 8, and penalties were among them.

Stock Up: TE Heath Miller

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There was one clear beneficiary of Ben Roethlisberger's Week 8 return: tight end Heath Miller. He was the Steelers' top receiver in the game, catching 10 passes on 13 targets for 105 yards, including a long reception of 25 yards.

It was Miller's best performance since Week 1, when he caught eight passes for 84 yards. In the four weeks without Roethlisberger, he had just five catches for 52 yards, with three of the catches and 46 of the yards coming in Week 5 against the San Diego Chargers.

Without Roethlisberger, the Steelers needed Miller's pass protection and run blocking more than his receiving prowess. But with Roethlisberger back, Miller has returned to being a do-it-all tight end, which includes serving as a chains-moving receiver. 

While it may take another game before Roethlisberger is on the same page as receivers Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant, he was able to pick up where he left off with the reliable Miller. And with Le'Veon Bell out for the season, Miller's involvement as a receiver should only increase from here on out.