Even though the offense started slow they responded when the defense started setting them up with good field position. Ben Roethlisberger was 25 of 37 for 340 yards and set another NFL record with back to back 6 touchdown games.
Other than the one series in which Roethlisberger was sacked three consecutive downs, the offensive line was impressive as was the youngsters Markus Wheaton who scored his second touchdown of the season and Martavis Bryant who scored his fifth touchdown in just three games.
And even though the ground game was held in eheck by the Ravens with Le’Veon Bell and DeGarrette Foster only picking up 43 yards on 20 carries the young receivers and Antonio Brown made up the difference. Brown had another exceptional game with 10 catches for 138 yards which moved him into first place in the league in receptions, 71, and yards, 996.
The Steelers have played their worst ball against the worst teams and the Jets is one of the two to three worst teams in football as their 1-8 record indicates.
They will be led this week by Michael Vick who started his first game of the season last week in a 24-10 defeat at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs. He replaces rookie Geno Smith who has looked terrible for most of this year. But he will have very little help in the backfield or at the receiver slots. The defense hasn’t been much better than the offense this season.
The Jets top receivers are Eric Decker 40 receptions for 426 yards, Jace Arnaro, 32 receptions for 285 yards and Jeremy Kerley 26 receptions for 237 yards. Percy Harvin traded to the Jets recently from the Seattle Seahawks, had an outstanding game with 11 receptions for 129 yards last week.
The running game is handled by Chris Ivory, 109 carries for 497 yards, and the former Tennessee Titans great Chris Johnson, 78 carries for 337 yards. Johnson is no longer the player he used to be.
The Steelers will have to drop their level of play to an all time low or Vick is going to have to play the game of his life, in order for the Jets to have any chance of avoiding a blowout.
With the Cleveland Browns (5-3) beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 22-17 all the teams in the AFC North have winning records.
This weekend the featured clash will be between the Browns and the Bengals in Cincinnati, and the Ravens hosting the Tennessee Titans.
My predictions: Bengals over the Browns, the Ravens over the Titans, and the Steelers over the Jets. If the Steelers win they will go into their bye week with a 7-3 record.
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