Photo credit: SteelCityHobbies
After the excitement of Pittsburgh’s Light Up Night and the celebratory weekend of welcoming the holiday season that followed, the loss against AFC rival, the Baltimore Ravens, has created a somber overcast in the now lit-up city. The Steelers now are 6-4, loosing their first home game this season to the Ravens, 13-10 on Sunday night at Heinz Field.
Most of that loss can be attributed to the lack of veteran quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, who is out until further notice with a sprained right shoulder and a dislocated rib, an injury he acquired during last week’s game against the Chiefs. However, backup quarterback, Byron Leftwich, made a good effort in his first game start since 2009. Although Leftwich scored the only Steelers touchdown by making a 31-yard scramble to the end-zone in the first few minutes of the game, he only completed 18 of 39 attempts for 201 yards, threw one interception and was sacked three times.
While Pittsburgh’s offensive line and special teams need some work, the defense looked strong and can be credited for the Raven’s low scoring game. Although, thanks to Leftwich, the Steelers had confidence and hope for a great game in the very beginning, as the clock kept rolling, the black and gold boys got tired and without the quality leadership of Roethlisberger could not pull out a win in the final moments where they controlled the ball. But, this is not a loss to hang their heads over. This loss shows that Leftwich is able to help carry the team, if the team helps to carry him. Without Roethlisberger, the entire team needs to pull together and play to their best ability, especially as the regular season is nearing the end if they have any hope to reach the final goal of playoffs and Super Bowl.
Next week, the Steelers hit the road for another big rival game against the Cleveland Browns at 1pm in Ohio.
