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Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 Bold predictions vs. Dolphins, Week 8

By Samuel Teets

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 22: Mason Rudolph #2 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts to throwing a 76-yard touchdown pass during the second half against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium on September 22, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 22: Mason Rudolph #2 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts to throwing a 76-yard touchdown pass during the second half against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium on September 22, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images) /
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SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 22: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers catches a pass and breaks away for a 76-yard touchdown play against the San Francisco 49ers during the third quarter of an NFL football game at Levi’s Stadium on September 22, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 22: JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers catches a pass and breaks away for a 76-yard touchdown play against the San Francisco 49ers during the third quarter of an NFL football game at Levi’s Stadium on September 22, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

1. JuJu Smith-Schuster finally has his day

The 2018 Pro Bowl wide receiver has struggled with the rest of the offense this season. It was accepted that his numbers would fall a little this year without Antonio Brown to draw double and triple coverages. However, without Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh’s passing game has been severely downgraded.

After six games, Smith-Schuster is averaging 56.7 receiving yards per game. He averaged 89.1 last season and 65.5 as a rookie. That shows just how much his production has fallen off. Again, it’s not Smith-Schuster’s fault at all. He just doesn’t have a competent quarterback throwing to him.

The Steelers are only throwing for 200 yards per game. That ranks 28th in the NFL this season. The only teams below the Steelers are the Bears, Dolphins, Jets, and Titans. That’s a miserable group to be stuck in. In contrast, last season, Pittsburgh’s offense finished second in this category, putting up 313 passing yards per game. Roethlisberger led the NFL in passing yards.

However, the game against Miami will finally give Smith-Schuster a chance to go off. The charismatic USC product will have to contend with Xavien Howard. Howard, who led the league in interceptions last season, is a good cornerback. Not even Howard can save Miami’s pass defense though.

Next. 20 Bold predictions for NFL Week 8. dark

With his speed, Smith-Schuster only needs a few looks to rack up a lot of yardage. We saw that back in Week 3 against the San Francisco 49ers. After putting up with the poor quarterback play so far, Smith-Schuster will be rewarded with a big game in Week 8.

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