Ben Roethlisberger gets NFL Spin Zone Player of the Week Again
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is on an absolute tear, as he followed up last week’s record-breaking performance against the Indianapolis Colts with a second straight six-touchdown day, leading the Steelers to a blowout win over the rival Baltimore Ravens. It’s rare for the Steelers to score 43 and win by 20 against their most bitter AFC North rivals, and it’s a testament to the way Roethlisberger is dominating right now. Since creating this weekly award last season, nobody has won in back-to-back weeks, but I felt Roethlisberger deserved to earn a place here ahead of the likes of Rob Gronkowski, Patrick Chung, Junior Galette, and Richard Sherman (note: I probably missed a couple of honorable mentions here).
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Roethlisberger wasn’t as impressive as he was last week, but he was still phenomenal. There are few quarterbacks who can hit the deep ball as consistently as Roethlisberger, and his arm strength, ability to keep his eyes downfield in the midst of pressure, and ability to extend plays are all conducive to big plays for the Steelers offense. And oh yeah, it also helps that Antonio Brown, Markus Wheaton, and electric Clemson rookie Martavis Bryant can all burn defenses deep with regularity.
Sunday Night Football games have been a great showcase for the Steelers offense, as they trampled the Carolina Panthers in a blowout Week 3 win. In Week 9, it was Big Ben’s turn to show that his Week 8 performance wasn’t just a one-time outburst, as he completed 25 of 37 passes for 340 yards, averaging a whopping 9.2 yards per attempt. Again, he had six touchdowns and no interceptions, and he also had a 136.3 QB Rating.
Roethlisberger had three touchdowns that went over 30 yards, including a 33-yarder to blocking specialist and backup TE Matt Spaeth. Antonio Brown was targeted 16 times and turned in a huge performance, Wheaton broke free for a long TD, Bryant added two to his haul, and Le’Veon Bell was the only other pass-catcher besides Brown to have at least five receptions.
As I said before the season started, the Steelers offense has the potential to be one of the best in the league because of their ability to generate huge plays behind Roethlisberger and three speedy wide receivers. That, combined with improved offensive line play thanks to Mike Munchak, has the Steelers passing attack rolling. Although Bell and LeGarrette Blount couldn’t do much against the Ravens front seven, those two must be accounted for each week as one of the league’s more talented running back duos.