PITTSBURGH — Ben Roethlisberger has earned the right, as he declared recently, to tell it like it is.
Maybe sometimes. Or maybe not.
As he stood in the Steelers locker room at Heinz Field on Sunday night, the quarterback-critic tried to sell the idea that this current flow is nothing more than a blip in the big picture. After all, it followed one of the most inglorious losses in the franchise’s history – a 33-30 collapse against the Chargers that marked the first time Pittsburgh lost at home after leading by at least 14 points in the second half.
His level of concern?
“None,” he insisted.
Why not?
“Don’t need to panic,” he replied. “Don’t need to worry.”
He just needs to face the reality: The Steelers have the look of a team that’s blowing it.
For the second game in a row, the Steelers faded in crunch time. A week after Roethlisberger’s goal-line interception sealed a loss at Denver, the Steelers allowed the Chargers to rally from a 16-point deficit.
Before Sunday, Pittsburgh (est. 1933) was 220-0-2 when holding a 14-point lead after halftime. Or 174-0-1 when leading by 16 points at home at any point of a game.
Just pick a trend-busting stat. They were all bad news for Mike Tomlin’s drama-magnet of a team.
No, the defense couldn’t protect the lead. But with a big meltdown as such, there’s always plenty of blame. Roethlisberger’s offense went flat, punting on its first three possessions of the second half. And one of the punts was returned by Desmond King for a 73-yard touchdown, exposing the special teams.
There were assorted missed opportunities, such as Roethlisberger overthrowing a wide-open Justin Hunter for a would-be 34-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Hunter replaced deactivated rookie James Washington in the lineup, days after Roethlisberger publicly shamed Washington for not hauling in a deep heave at Denver. Now the shame is on Roethlisberger.
“I just put too much on it,” Roethlisberger said of the miss to Hunter. “That’s on me.”
On another first-half throw, under pressure on a third-down play from the Chargers’ 22, Roethlisberger didn’t get enough on the ball. Rookie safety Derwin James intercepted the ugly throw, marking another squandered opportunity. It was Roethlisberger’s sixth interception in three games, which coincided with some beautiful passes to Antonio Brown and … way too many errant throws.
But there’s no level of concern. Must be a company line.
“We’re good,” Steelers cornerback Joe Haden maintained. “We’re still on track to do what we want to do. We’ve still got four games left. We’ve just got to go tighten back up. We’re not panicking. … We control our own destiny.”
At 7-4-1, the Steelers are still leading the AFC North. But two weeks ago, they were positioned as the No. 2 seed in the AFC, in line to earn a first-round bye. Now, with Baltimore (7-5) surging, the division lead isn’t safe, either.
Not exactly the direction a team with championship visions needs to be heading. If it doesn’t turn around quickly, the Steelers will again assume the position as the NFL’s biggest tease.
But at least, as Haden allowed, there’s time to get back on track.
Haden, incidentally, was involved in a crucial play – or Keystone Kops moment — that epitomized the type of night it was for the Steelers in blowing a 23-7 halftime lead.
On a third-down from the Pittsburgh 10, late in the third quarter, Haden undercut Keenan Allen’s route in the end zone and had his hands on a Philip Rivers interception until … safety Sean Davis crashed into his teammate to jar the ball loose.
The football popped into the air for a diving Allen to snag for the touchdown. The comeback was on.
“Oh, I had it,” Haden said of the game-swinging event. “It was picked. Just unlucky right there.”
But not concerned.
With a trip to Oakland next week followed by a Week 15 showdown at home against the Patriots, the condition of running back James Conner will also bear watching. Conner left in the second half on Sunday night with a lower leg contusion.
Conner has been a largely impressive replacement for Le’Veon Bell, the all-pro who opted to sit out the season rather than accept a $14.5 million franchise tag salary. Now Conner’s availability, or effectiveness, could be a concern.
Of course, the Steelers – and Roethlisberger — don’t want to panic or worry.
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