Nov 18, 2013 5 min read

PITTSBURGH – Ben Roethlisberger finally got his wish, and the results were probably better than he could have imagined.

Almost since the day Roethlisberger joined the Steelers in 2004, the quarterback has lobbied to use more no-huddle offense.

In Sunday’s 37-27 win over Detroit at Heinz Field, the Steelers ran the no-huddle almost 50 percent of the time with a great deal of success.

It was something Roethlisberger, who had run the no-huddle almost exclusively in college at Miami (Ohio), had always longed for but had never been given the OK to do under offensive coordinators Ken Whisenhunt and Bruce Arians.

Ironically, it was offensive coordinator Todd Haley, with whom many have been waiting for Roethlisberger to clash, who gave the quarterback the freedom he craved.

Haley said he and Roethlisberger are getting along better than ever, despite continued national reports of a strained relationship between the two.

“I’ve been saying it since the offseason and training camp, through time and growth of relationships in general, I would expect it to be moving in the direction that it is,” Haley said. “It’s been night and day going all the way back to training camp, and obviously we haven’t had the results that we want, so we’re all disappointed where we are right now. But we still can control that and turn a bad into a good. I’ll say it again, I think we’ve been on the cusp of being a pretty efficient, good offense, even with some adversity and moving parts.”

The offense had its most complete game Sunday with a mix of Roethlisberger and Haley calling the plays.

When the Steelers ran the no-huddle, Roethlisberger completed 13 of 23 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns, a passer rating of 119.7. When the Steelers did huddle, he was 16 of 22 for 136 yards and two touchdowns, a rating of 118.8.

The key to the yardage differences was the fact the Steelers, who improved to 4-6 with the victory, were able to keep the Lions from making substitutions. Roethlisberger and the Steelers took advantage by getting some long catch-and-runs working out of their no-huddle offense.

“I think it minimizes what the defense can do,” said tight end Heath Miller. “You can get a feel for what to expect from them based on how they’re aligned and stuff like that. But you’ve got to make it work and make first downs. Ben did a nice job of that.”

Much of the game was a collaberative effort, with Roethlisberger calling the plays on the field, while also taking a lot of input from Haley and others.

“It’s a combination when we came to the sidelines,” said Roethlisberger, who now has thrown for four touchdowns in two of the Steelers’ last three games. “It’s me calling them out there, but on the sidelines, I’m talking to all the receivers, tight ends, running backs, coach Haley and (quarterbacks coach) Randy Fichtner. We are trying to brainstorm and see what is the best, so they can prepare me when I am on the field to call the best play possible.”

The 37 points the Steelers scored were a season-high, but the team did fail on its first three trips inside the red zone. Running back Le’Veon Bell and Miller both dropped touchdown passes in the second quarter on drives that resulted in the Steelers kicking field goals, while Roethlisberger overthrew tight end David Paulson, who was wide open in the back of the end zone, on another failed attempt inside the 20 that led to a third Shaun Suisham field goal.

Ironically, it has been Bell and Miller who have made two of the bigger impacts on the Steelers’ offense this season. Miller missed the first two games while recovering from a torn ACL, while Bell sat out the first three games with a foot injury.

In the first three games of this season without those two, the Steelers averaged 14 points per game. In the past seven games with both Bell and Miller in the lineup, they have scored an average of 24.9.

But had the Steelers scored touchdowns in those situations instead of kicking field goals, they would have put 49 points on the scoreboard.

“They have a really good offense,” said Miller of the Lions. “We knew that they were capable of possibly putting some points on the board. We wanted to keep the pedal to the metal. We had a lull in the second quarter where we didn’t take advantage of some opportunities.

“We left some points out there.”

Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who left Sunday’s game with a foot injury, is not expected to miss a significant amount of time. Sanders has had surgery on both feet since joining the Steelers in 2010. … With his team-best seventh touchdown catch Sunday, wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery set a new career high for scores. … Linebacker Jason Worilds has three sacks in his last three games.