Steelers still need their Superman
In these days, when another superhero movie seemingly is released each month, it’s not surprising to see plenty of references made to them.
But Steelers quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner’s admission earlier this week that he hasn’t seen quarterback Ben Roethlisberger don the Superman cape nearly as much as in the past was a big one.
In case you missed it, Fichtner said, “You get used to the Superman cape coming (out) all the time and it just hasn’t yet. There’s been series, there have been plays. There have been a lot of unique plays. But I think everyone – we get caught thinking that Superman cape should be coming (out) every play when it doesn’t necessarily have to. If we protect the ball and we give ourself a chance, that’s the end story, the end game, to win the game.”
The Steelers have been winning despite what has been some less-than-stellar play from their quarterback. And that is a testament to the roster that general manager Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin have built.
Since losing to the Dallas Cowboys last season to fall to 4-5, the Steelers are 15-3, counting playoff games. They take a 6-2 record into today’s game against the Indianapolis Colts and are tied for the best record in the AFC.
Of course, the team they are tied with for the best record in the AFC, New England, is 16-2 over that same period.
The New England cloud is going to continue to lurk over the Steelers until they prove they can beat the Patriots in a big game.
The next opportunity for that will be Dec. 17 at Heinz Field.
And Superman, er, Roethlisberger, will need to show he can still do some spectacular things at that time.
He has five chances to start to get it right, though.
The Steelers aren’t asking him to do Superman things nearly as often as they used to.
“We’ve all seen it. It’s special,” said Fichtner. “It’s happened a lot. But I don’t know that you necessarily have to do that. We just talk about him being that point guard, more often times than not. Get the ball to the right guy to make a play and trust these guys to make a play. We’ve got enough guys to do that.”
Though Roethlisberger’s overall passer rating is just 82.7, if we give him a mulligan for a five-interception game against Jacksonville, his rating jumps to just above 90.
That’s more than passable, and in line with what he’s done throughout his career.
To Fichtner’s point, Roethlisberger does need to be more of a pass-first point guard to stick with the basketball analogy. This team doesn’t need him to take 20 shots a game to have success.
The defense, which was in the bottom half of the league a few years ago, has turned into a strength. The running game is solid. And in wide receivers Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster and, yes, even Martavis Bryant, the weapons are there for special plays.
Despite Roethlisberger’s struggles throwing the ball deep – he’s just 4 of 25 on passes that travel 30-plus yards through the air – the Steelers lead the league in 40-yard passing plays with nine.
“I genuinely don’t know how my stats are and stack up against other years, but I feel like I’ve been as involved and have had as good of a season … as maybe ever,” Roethlisberger said.
So, he has bought into the philosophy.
But there will come times when the Steelers need him to make plays. The world, after all, still needs Superman.
Against the Colts would be a good time for Roethlisberger to show he’s capable. In his past three games against Indianapolis, Roethlisberger has completed 72 percent of his passes for 1,107 yards and 13 touchdowns.
It would be nice to see that Superman lives before the Steelers need him in a game against the Patriots.