Big Ben Down

This was perhaps the best and worst week for the Steelers all in one. While the Steelers were able to win in a less than convincing fashion, last week against the Rams, it came with a high price. The Steelers have lost their star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger due to a sprained MCL. The quarterback is expected to miss up to six weeks while he recovers. This is an extreme blow to the surging Steelers offense. Prior to his injury, they were one of the best offenses in the league. However, after leaving the game the Steelers struggled to produce anything on offense.

These offensive difficulties begs the question of whether or not the Steelers are serious contenders in their next coming games. The backup is veteran quarterback Michael Vick. Vick has been surrounded with controversy for most of his career in relation to illegal dog fighting. In addition, the aging quarterback is well past his prime. However, the Steelers brought him in this off season for this exact reason. Now, regardless of whether Steeler fans love or hate Vick, they must root for the quarterback to be able to step into the spotlight.

Even with all this negative drama, there still were a few bright spots in the Steelers performance on Sunday. Le'Veon Bell returned to action and looked to be in full force. He was a stand out in the Steelers backfield, producing 62 rushing yards and 70 receiving yards while adding on a touchdown. This performance proved why he is one of the best running backs in the league and why Steelers fans were anxious for his return.

With Ben out it appears as if Bell will be carrying the majority of the workload on offense. Vick will need to reestablish himself as a viable starting quarterback in the NFL before the Steelers will trust him with too many throwing duties. This will surely put a damper on the numbers of star receiver Antonio Brown, who up to this point has the second most receiving yards in the NFL. Brown will surely see less targets due to the reduction in the passing game. This is a detriment to fantasy owners who were enjoying Brown's amazing productiveness.

Additionally, this offensive mystery comes at the wrong time for the Steelers who are set to play their division rivals, the Baltimore Ravens, this week. This season the Ravens are 0-3. However, they showed extreme promise last week. Veteran wide receiver Steve Smith had a breakout game and will surely produce numbers this week against the Steelers.

All in all, the Steelers are not in a good position this week. Both teams have been average to below average defensively. This means that it should be an offensive battle. This does not gain favor for the Steelers.

Truly, this game is going to come down to whether or not Vick can step it up a notch. Nevertheless, regardless of all the speculation, this game is going to be action packed. Every time these teams get together it is a battle for the ages.

Now all we can do as fans is wait and watch, while the injured Big Ben does the same.