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No matter what cliche you want to use in regard to speed in the NFL, there is no doubting that it has a very real and big effecton each game every Sunday. Mike Wallace, the Pittsburgh speedster, was limited this week due to a hamstring problem. When Wallace went streaking down the sidelines midway through the second quarter, Big Ben hit him in stride, and the confused Arizona secondary looked like a bunch of middle school kids brought up to play on the varsity squad.
With Rashard Mendenhall feeling good after a resurgent game last week, fell back off again to the tune of 13 carries for 32 yards. This game was all Ben Roethlisberger from beginning to end. Ben was "Super" in his first rematch since these two teams played in the Super Bowl a few years back. He threw for 361 yards on 26 completions, and had three TD passes one to Heath Miller, another to Emmanuel Sanders, and the aforementioned one to Wallace. Two receivers went over the 100 yard mark along with Wallace, and that was Antonio Brown. He has become the defacto #2 wide receiver, as he finished with 7 catches for 102 yards.
The vaunted Steeler D has come under fire this year, as they have not been the same so far this year. With injuries all along the line, and linebacker James Harrison missing the next couple of games, they have struggled. Kevin Kolb, Arizona's version of QB of the future, got into the swing of things and threw two TD's. However, his biggest threat, Larry Fitzgerald was held relatively in check only getting 4 for 78. Veteran Steeler wide out and former Dancing with the Stars contestant Hines Ward was carted off the field in the third quarter. It is being described as an ankle injury, but no further details were available.
Pittsburgh once again could find no room to run, and this against a Cardinal team that has been getting gouged on the ground all season. Even though they were winning and trying to drain the clock near the end, they still only ran the ball a total of 26 times. Mendenhall and his cohorts are going to have to do a better job if they expect to get back to the playoffs, and enjoy some success. Without the run, Ben will be on the run, and he's already been hobbled a couple of times this season.
It doesn't get much easier for the Steelers in the upcoming schedule either. They face Baltimore again next week, then play a Cincinnatti Bengal team that is far better than anyone suspected. After a much needed bye week, they will face and up and coming Kansas City team before entertaining the Bengals once again. A tough stretch no doubt, but if they can get through it with 2 or 3 wins, they should be OK for the remainder of the year. Lucky for them, they end their season playing 3 out of their last 4 games against Cleveland and St. Louis.
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