City of Champions
Fansided

Steelers: Roethlisberger, DeCastro, Brown named to Pro Bowl

By Zack Zeigler

facebooktwitterreddit

Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, and David DeCastro were the three Steelers named to the 2015 Pro Bowl Team.

As the NFL regular season winds down, the best of the best start to emerge from the pack. These elite players get the chance of a lifetime to play in the Pro Bowl under the sunny skies of Hawaii.

Yesterday, the Pro Bowl rosters were announced and the three Steelers named to the team were quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, wide receiver Antonio Brown and guard David DeCastro.

Each of these three players are very deserving of this honor. They each have had success on the field and have been key pieces to the Steelers success as of late.

It all starts at the quarterback position with Ben Roethlisberger. Despite missing four games earlier in the season, Roethlisberger has had a solid season at quarterback throwing for 3,369 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions and a 96.4 passer rating.

Last week he became the first quarterback since December of 2014 to throw for 300 yards against the Denver Broncos.

In that game Roethlisberger went 40-55 for 380 yards and three touchdowns. Roethlisberger’s interceptions are up this season, but he is finding a way to win games for this Steelers team as was evident by the 34-27 comeback win against the Broncos.

With Ben starting at quarterback, the Steelers have a record of 7-3 and are outscoring their opponents 296-208. Roethlisberger can spread the ball around and when he needs to make the big throw, he can put the ball right where his receivers can grab it.

Speaking of wide receivers, arguably the best wide receiver in the league—Antonio Brown—was the second Steeler named to the Pro Bowl team.

Brown leads the NFL in receiving yards with 1,586.When Pittsburgh played the Oakland Raiders, he broke the Steelers’ record for catches and receiving yards in a game with 17 catches for 284 yards.

Last week against the Broncos, Brown was one of two receivers with over 100 yards receiving with his final stat line at 16 catches for 189 yards and two touchdowns.

Broncos cornerback Chris Harris spoke about covering Brown after Sunday’s game:

Brown has thrived when Roethlisberger has started at quarterback. Of the ten games started by the duo, Brown has seven 100-plus yard receiving games and all nine of his touchdowns have been scored with Roethlisberger.

The final Pro Bowler for the Steelers is guard David DeCastro. The fourth-year player has started all 14 games this season, and has anchored this offensive line.

More from Ben Roethlisberger

He has helped open holes for running backs Le’Veon Bell and DeAngelo Williams, and has greatly improved in pass protection since his injury ridden rookie season in 2012.

While the teams are named, there are many deserving players who do not get a chance to participate in the Pro Bowl. There are two big snubs in my opinion, DeAngelo Williams and Cameron Heyward.

At age 38, Williams has been a godsend for this Steeler team. He has been able to fill the void at running back left by the injured Le’Veon Bell. He has accumulated 779 yards and nine touchdowns as Bell’s replacement.

Williams has not allowed any quarterback pressures this season. He has been keeping pressure off of Roethlisberger with blocks like this.

Williams is getting up there in age and his chances to make the Pro Bowl are dwindling. He should have had the chance to be there this season.

The other snub on this team is Cameron Heyward. He leads the Steelers in sacks with 7.0 and has been a big part of stopping the run game.

Heyward has done a nice job taking on offensive double teams, and opening up holes for the linebackers to come in and make tackles. While this work doesn’t show up on the stat sheet, Heyward’s play has been invaluable and there is no telling where Pittsburgh’s defense would be without him.

Heyward along with fellow defensive end Stephon Tuitt have also played the most defensive snaps this year for Pittsburgh.

With the holiday season in full swing, some Steelers got the present of a trip to the Pro Bowl while others got the lump of coal by being snubbed. As the Steelers know, the reason for the season is giving joy and spreading Christmas cheer.

Next: Jalen Ramsey: Steelers Prospect Watch

However, the ultimate present for this team would be to have all their players playing the next week in Super Bowl 50. With the offense surging as of late, playing in “The Big Game” is a possibility.

Home/Ben Roethlisberger