Pittsburgh Steelers Must Learn from Ravens, Patriots Games to Beat Bengals

As fans, we couldn't have two more extreme emotional states after watching the past two Steeler games.
The writing on the wall (aka articles, blogs) also reflects fans' mindset as they analyze their team's potential.

Let's face it, if the final score had been what everyone thought it would be before that last drive (20-16 Pittsburgh Steelers over Baltimore Ravens), we all would be pumped up and writing about the Steelers' strong position in the AFC.  It would have been considered a tough, grind-out win—a second home win in a row against the AFC's elite teams.

But last Sunday's outcome does leave a bad taste in our mouths, and it makes us think only of the glaring weaknesses that showed up during the Ravens game.

So I am fighting the urge to focus only on the bad from last night's game.  The Steelers players and coaches would be wise to not let this loss linger.  In order to beat an up-and-coming Bengals team, the Steelers need to leverage what was good from the Patriots and Ravens games (roughly 110 out of the total 120 minutes of football), and overcome the bad.

Things To Avoid

There is only one slide for this because it is too frustrating to talk about what went wrong on Sunday. 

The loss yesterday exposed some troubling things.  Let's list them here and hope we never see them again.

Prevent defense, William Gay, third down defensive efficiency, red-zone offensive efficiency, officiating, poor run play selection for 3rd-and-1 conversions and not closing out games with good offense.

Prevent defense:  Clock winding down, 92 yards allowed to Flacco and just one WR that meant anything (Boldin).  Enough said.

Officiating:  Officiating has become totally inconsistent and confusing.  The only thing I urge is that if Ike Taylor sees that the officials are going to call the game closely, he needs to modify his style or find ways to cover up what he likes to do.  Steelers will just have to overcome officiating.  Nothing else can be done about it.

Third-and-1 runs:  Please don't toss it back five yards deep into the backfield and hope Mendenhall can work back to the line of scrimmage and gain one yard.  You might as well take a false start penalty and try again.  Let's just move forward!

Closing out games:  Even though Dick LeBeau and the defense failed miserably on the last drive, they should never have been in that scenario.  They did their jobs on the previous drive, and the offense needed to get one more first down and/or a field goal to secure the win.

All this bad stuff seems worse after a loss.  Now let's get on to why the other 110 minutes of these last two games should make Steelers fans feel good about the Bengals game and the rest of the season.

Youth and Substitutes

The past two games have shown that replacement players can hang, and get the job done.

Larry Foote raised his game to a new level against the Ravens. He literally seemed to be in the middle of everything, brushing off blockers and tackling everything in sight.

The young cornerbacks played such a big role in shutting down the Patriots for most of the game.  I would like to see them used more, instead of Gay and McFadden.  Carnell Lake and the coaches seem to have done a good job getting them ready, and I'd rather live and die with them.

Having James Harrison back and creating havoc showed that we need both him and Woodley healthy, but the backups did an adequate job filling in.  The backups are not making splash plays yet, but it's good to know they can step in.

On the offensive side, Brown, Sanders, Cotchery and Gilbert all are starting material, and we need to use them for sixty minutes.

Coaches, please figure out a way to maximize your talent.  I am sure Gay, Farrior, McFadden and Ward can be important pieces, but maybe not the main pieces anymore.  It's the coach's job to figure out this mix against the Bengals and onwards.

Big Ben & the No-Huddle

When the Steelers' offense goes into no-huddle, quick snap mode, it just works better than anything else.

There is no excuse for the coaches to not maximize their offensive talent, and the no-huddle achieves that and so much more. 

For the Steelers, the no-huddle keeps the chains moving, gets the offense in rhythm and keeps opposing defenses tired and guessing.  With the chains moving, the Steelers' defense can rest and be more effective on their side of the ball. 

Most importantly, the no-huddle will probably help in the red zone.

Ben Roethlisberger thrives in the no-huddle and seems to know his receivers well enough.  The offensive line doesn't seem to have any problems flowing with the no-huddle.

I would like to see the no-huddle up to 75 percent of the time.  Not sure if Arians will do it.

Tight Ends and Running Backs

If Big Ben and Bruce Arians keep an eye out for running backs and tight ends on every drive, the number of weapons doubles.  The use of Heath Miller in the middle while teams worry about four talented wide receivers has been effective. 

Between Mewelde Moore and Rashard Mendenhall, the Steelers have two above average pass-catching backs who can be a valuable outlet and rescue Big Ben from pressure. 

As the weather gets worse, these receiving threats will be useful to keep the chains moving without going into run mode.

Blitz and Pressure

The Steelers' defense must continue to bring the heat.  James Harrison back in the lineup created the only pressure in the Ravens game, and LaMarr Woodley did some damage in the Patriots game before hurting his hamstring. 

Harrison and Woodley, when healthy together, will be an intimidating, punishing force for quarterbacks.  Neither had truly peaked until just before getting injured, so that bodes well for the second half of the season.

As I said before, these guys are so awesome around the line of scrimmage, that I do not want to see them drop into pass coverage again.  They are too good at stuffing runners and harassing quarterbacks. Steelers would be wise to do what they showed against the Patriots—bringing outside line backers not only from the edges, but also from middle gaps.

Mix in a bit of Polamalu Power around the box to create more traffic than opposing blockers can handle.

Save the Best for the Bengals

The Bengals are on the rise.  They have a good record.  But their schedule hasn't introduced them to Baltimore or Pittsburgh yet.

Next week's game will be critical for the Steelers to not only recover from this divisional loss to the Ravens, but also to dismiss the Bengals into the background.

The Steelers cannot afford to come out sluggish, giving the young Bengals confidence at home.

The Steelers need to bottle up and unleash all of their power for sixty minutes.  They need to keep their run defense as is, introduce James Harrison to young Andy Dalton and let Big Ben fire away all the way down the field.  This next game could be the first positive step towards another crack at Baltimore in the playoffs.