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Who needs the Veon Bell? The hot attack of the Pittsburgh Steelers resulted in a rousing performance that left the Carolina Panthers in a wrinkled and disheveled mess Thursday Football. Here's what we learned from the Steelers' 52-21 win in Week 10:
1. The Steelers went from zero to thermonuclear on first strike. Ben Roethlisberger's 75-yard touchdown pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster on Pittsburgh's first game in the scrum set the tone. An interception of Vince Williams who reported 17 yards for a touchdown in the first play of the Panthers' subsequent possession fanned the flames that proved too difficult to extinguish for Carolina (6-3). Pittsburgh scored 31 points on all his possessions except one in the first half (and he was driving at the end of the second quarter). The Steelers (6-2-1) left Roethlisberger on the sidelines for most of the fourth quarter after completing 22 of 25 passes for 328 yards and five touchdowns. His achievement percentage of 88.0 sets a Steelers franchise record. It was a truly dominant performance for Big Ben, who continues to showcase the skills that have made him one of the best spokespersons of his generation. It is amazing to think that he was already thinking about retiring two years ago when he was watching his performance against the Panthers in concert with the rest of his efforts during the Steelers' five-game winning streak. "We just found a way to capitalize on the way we needed to win," Roethlisberger told Fox Sports' Kristina Pink after the match.
2. So much for the Panthers' defense. Big Ben, Antonio Brown and Smith-Schuster exposed the weaknesses of Carolina's turbid high school, which has hardly benefited from the help of the first seven places. The Pittsburgh offensive line allowed his quarterback TD to get high by zipping behind a protective barrier that allowed him to separate the Panthers from his privileged statuesque pocket pose. While the Steelers' offensive line forced the Panthers to do their homework, Pittsburgh's wide receivers revolved around Carolina High School, coaching James Bradberry, Deonte Thompson and Eric Reid with unflinching efficiency. Antonio Brown scored six catches for 96 yards, Smith-Schuster scored three passes for 90 yards and forward Vance McDonald had four catches for 44 yards. Each player took a TD shot in a match with the highest number of points scored by the Steelers at Heinz Field. "We dropped the games over, which did not happen [before]Panthers coach Ron Rivera said his team tied the franchise record with the most points in a game.
3. Christian McCaffrey was the only brilliant point of the Panthers. The second-year defense posted an incredible individual performance, though it was quickly overshadowed by the team's inability to keep pace with the Steelers' torrid pace. McCaffrey had 77 yards in 14 carries with a total of 77 yards and one touchdown in over 61 yards and two touchdowns in five assists. McCaffrey's ability to add a dynamic playmaker to the Panthers' offense was instrumental in fueling the team's four-game winning streak before diving into a chasm.
4 Does James Conner's concussion raise the urgency of a return from The Veon Bell? Conner left the game in the fourth quarter after suffering a concussion. It remains to be seen if the halfback of the second year is likely to miss the meeting next week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Before the injury, Conner looked like himself, although coach Mike Tomlin limited his play time in the second quarter to keep it cool after just four days off. Unfortunately, Conner suffered a concussion after accumulating 65 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns. With Conner status outstanding, there is an element of Steelerdom that will likely be looking forward to seeing Bell return as soon as possible.
5 The physical dominance of Pittsburgh is extended to the defense. The Steelers fired Cam Newton five times and regularly lobbied him. Newton's choice of six in the first quarter came after Newton sent a last whistle out of the end zone to avoid being fired by T.J. Watt for safety. Newton subsequently averted a potential disaster by seizing the blind slobberknocker of a Watt shot, which ended in a fumble on which McCaffrey was thrown. In the end, the Steelers managed to round up Newton, who finished with 23 passes out of 29, or 193 yards and two touchdowns. A week after his victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Newton just did not get the protection he needed to make a serious comeback against the Steelers.
"We've just gone astray, man, we've just cut our throats," Newton said. "It was a humiliating piece of pie … At the end of the day, they won, and it's hard, but everything will be fine."
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