Pittsburgh Steelers report card after Week 8 loss to Oakland Raiders
By Matt Shetler
Defensive Line: It wasn’t a good day for the front three. Pryor’s 93-yard TD run on the first play from scrimmage set the tone. The Steelers allowed a season-high 197 yards rushing to the Raiders and three rushing touchdowns, two by Darren McFadden. Brett Keisel recorded a sack, but just keep in mind that the Steelers have already allowed nine touchdowns on the ground. That’s the same number they allowed all last season. On the bright side, Cam Heyward seemed pretty active with six tackles. Grade: D+
Oct 27, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers strong safety
Troy Polamalu(43) carries the ball after an interception against the Oakland Raiders during the first quarter at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Linebackers: It was a bad day for the linebacking core, as LaMarr Woodley got caught inside on Pryor’s TD run and McFadden fooled all of the linebackers on his touchdown out of the Wildcat. Lawrence Timmons had an above average game with eight tackles, but there were very few positives to be found. Grade: D
Secondary: On the surface the defensive backs played pretty well. Pryor threw for only 88 yards, was picked off twice and had a passer rating of 25.7. However Oakland made their biggest plays in the passing game on third down, when the Steelers struggled to get off the field, especially in the first half when Oakland converted four of seven opportunities. Grade: B-
Special Teams: Shaun Suisham isn’t Superman after all. Whatever it was, the Raiders had his kryptonite as the usually automatic Suisham shanked field goals of 34 and 32 yards, which ultimately proved costly. Punter Zoltan Mesko had another lackluster performance, including having a punt partially blocked. Even though he had punts of 65 and 56 yards in the second half, consistency continues to be a major issue. It wouldn’t shock me to see the Steelers make a move with Mesko. Grade: F
Coaching: We said this all year last season, but falling behind early and getting beaten by teams the Steelers should not lose to speaks primarily about the preparation of this team on both sides of the ball. Simply unacceptable for Mike Tomlin and his staff. Grade: F