Pittsburgh Steelers: Studs and duds vs. Colts in Week 9

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PITTSBURGH, PA – NOVEMBER 03: Bud Dupree #48 of the Pittsburgh Steelers strip sacks Brian Hoyer #2 of the Indianapolis Colts in the second half on November 3, 2019 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Stud: Bud Dupree, OLB

While Heyward and T.J. Watt are the most well known Pittsburgh pass rushers, Dupree caught fire against the Colts. Dupree strip-sacked Hoyer early in the third quarter and the fifth-year linebacker recovered the ball. Dupree finished the game with two sacks, two tackles for loss, and three quarterback hits.

Dupree, who is in the final year of his contract, tied his single-season career-high in sacks on Sunday. His career-high came back in 2017 when Dupree recorded six sacks in 15 games. He now has six sacks in eight games this season.

Dupree is pacing 12 sacks this season. He’s delivering in a contract year and some team will reward him with a nice, new deal this coming offseason.

Dud: Referees

Late in the fourth quarter, Steven Nelson was called for a pass interference call where the ball clearly wasn’t catchable. It wasn’t within 10 yards of the intended wide receiver, Zach Pascal, and Nelson bumped into Pascal who fell down.

Mike Tomlin wisely challenged the call, but the pass interference call was upheld. The ball was uncatchable. It was obvious to the announcers and anyone who watched the replay, except the folks in New York.

This is just the latest example of poor refereeing altering games. Although, if the Steelers were able to finish offensive drives, the refs wouldn’t have had a chance to change the outcome of the game.

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