The Pittsburgh Steelers were expected by many to be one of the league's elite teams this season, but on Sunday, they dropped a game to the previously-winless Oakland Raiders, after leading by ten heading into the fourth quarter.
Steelers Vs. Raiders, Week 3: 1-2 Record ‘A Fair Assessment’ Of Pittsburgh
Although Ben Roethlisberger had a great game - 384 yards, four touchdowns - Pittsburgh's running backs did little in the absence of Rashard Mendenhall, and the Steelers' defense was gashed for 113 yards on the ground by Darren McFadden. Neal Coolong of Steelers blog Behind the Steel Curtain expounded on what he said was an unsurprising result, considering Pittsburgh's poor play on Sunday.
Pittsburgh is off next week, and will hopefully take some time to figure out how a team can sit at 1-2 with a quarterback playing as well as Roethlisberger is. The quick and obvious answers are they are getting no splash plays on the defensive side of the ball, their running game is severely overmatched (Oakland allowed 147 yards a game on the ground through two games) and now they have receivers with fumbleitis.
The Steelers have a bye next week, and hope to return Mendenhall as well as defensive cogs James Harrison and Troy Polamalu when they return to face the Philadelphia Eagles in two weeks.
For more on the Steelers, head over to Behind the Steel Curtain and check out SB Nation Pittsburgh.
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