Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 Takeaways from Week 5 win over Eagles

What did we learn about the Pittsburgh Steelers as they moved to 4-0 on the season?

The Pittsburgh Steelers are 4-0, following their 38-29 win against the Philadelphia Eagles, for the first time since their Super Bowl-winning season in 1979. The passing game was in sync and Ben Roethlisberger completed 27 of 34 passes to lead the Steelers to a win.

Though Pittsburgh came out victorious, they will need to clean up some aspects of their game before the improved Cleveland Browns, sitting at 4-1 to begin their campaign, come to town in Week 6.

Here are the three biggest takeaways from the Steelers Week 5 win over the Eagles and what it means for the team moving forward.

3. Ben Roethlisberger is proving all the doubters wrong

Ben Roethlisberger’s elbow was the story of the last calendar year in Pittsburgh. Literally every possible outcome came with the caveat, “well, it depends on Ben’s elbow.” Instead of struggling and showing signs of the end being near, Roethlisberger is having a career year after some thought he had played his final down.

Big Ben is completing 69.9 percent of his passes, a passer rating of 110.4 and has a 10-1 TD-INT ration, all of which are career-bests.

A variety of things have helped Roethlisberger. Matt Canada coming in to help modernize the offense has sped up the time in which the ball is released. Instituting a more frequent use of pre-snap motion has also helped him read the defense more aptly. Pittsburgh doesn’t need Big Ben to throw for 300 yards per game but he’s been a catalyst behind their hot start. He’s been as good as ever and has utilized the dynamic playmakers on offense.

2. Chase Claypool is next in line of star receivers in Pittsburgh

What a game it was for the rookie out of Notre Dame. After just nine catches in the first three weeks combined, Chase Claypool had seven receptions for 110 yards and three touchdowns along with a two-yard touchdown run off a jet sweep in the red zone.

The one they call “Mapletron” is the next in line of star receivers that Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert always seems to find in the NFL Draft. Claypool, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson and James Washington were all taken in the second round or later, as were notable former Steelers such as Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown, all of whom had prominent roles while in the Steel City.

Even though Week 5 was Claypool’s coming-out party, it felt as if he was due. Pass-catchers had stepped up in different weeks to that point, so the rookie’s time had come. Regardless, he’s already proving he will be a go-to target and a problem for opposing defenses for years to come.

1. Defense needs to return to form vs. Cleveland. 

The Steelers field one of the NFL’s best defenses. That said, they looked out of character against the Eagles down the stretch. While the Steelers led by as many as 17 points in the second half, they allowed the Eagles to march back and cut the lead to two points while also allowing a practice squad wide receiver to put up a 150-yard outing.

Pittsburgh has shown an unfortunate tendency to take their foot off the gas when they have the lead. It happened against Denver and again against Philly. The Browns are more talented than either of those teams offensively. With Cleveland finding their groove, the Steelers will need to be clicking on all cylinders to see 5-0.