Quarterbacks: Ben Roethlisberger played only two series and wasn’t able to get into groove as the first team offense only produced one first down. Ben finished the night 2-2 for 14 yards. Charlie Batch was effective going to 3/5 for 93 yds and a touchdown. In the first two preseason games, Batch has surprisingly thrown a very good deep ball. There were some worries prior to camp about Batch fitting into the Arians offense. The Steelers are in a very good position if Roethlisberger goes down for a few games. Brian St. Pierre got the balk of the snaps and has looked better than he has in past training camps
Runnings backs: If Najeh Davinport is the teams #2 back, the Steelers might be in trouble if Willie Parker misses significant time. Kevan Barlow actually got some playing time and was okay. He had a couple nice runs. If he practices well this week, there is some speculation Barlow and Davis may get some work with the first & second team on short yardage situations in place of Najeh Davinport. I have been told that coach Tomlin has not been impressed with any of his backs in short yardage situations. Gary Russell had a solid game but he was going up against arena football league players so it’s hard to get a read on him and Carey Davis. The way Davis & Russell practice is going to be the conclusion whether one of them makes the club.
Wide Receivers: I may be the only one who thinks this but Hines Ward has looked a step slow thus far. I noticed the same thing last year although he was hampered but a nagging hamstring injury. Santonio Holmes will outproduce Ward this season. Walter Young has had a solid camp and was impressive Saturday night catching a 41 yard touchdown pass from Charlie Batch. Nate Washingtons‘ job appears to be safe due to the fact that Ben Roethlisberger believes he can have a impact on this offense. If the Steelers carry 6 wideouts Young has a shot at making the team.
O-line: To sum it up, the first and second team were awful against the Packers. Yes, Alan Faneca was not in the game but the Steelers O-Line wasn’t going up against the Jacksonville Jaguars D-Line. Guard Chris Kemoeatu was the biggest disappointment Saturday night. Kemoeatu replaced Alan Faneca in the starting lineup and made a horrible block on a 3rd and 1 early in game and missed his assignment on the blocked extra point. Max Starks had a rough day playing left tackle. Starks still believes he is the teams starting right tackle but Willie Colon is making a strong bid to be the teams starting right tackle. I give a slight edge to Starks despite his lackluster performance Saturday Night.
Defense: The first team defense has been phenomenal through the first two preseason games. Some analysts have some worries about the Steelers lack of pressure on the outside but that will come. Ricardo Colclough is one player i didn’t think was going to make the team this year but he had a great game Saturday night. He will make the team out of camp and at this moment William Gay has the edge on Anthony Madison to make the team.
