–The Steelers need a No. 3 receiver to step up after veteran Justin Hunter sustained a shoulder injury against the Chargers that landed him on injured reserve. Hunter assumed that job last week after James Washington was benched for dropping a pass the previous week against the Broncos.
The coaches have some options. They can activate Eli Rogers to the 53-man roster. Rogers, who has served as the slot receiver the past two seasons, began practicing last week after spending the first half of the season on physically unable to perform while rehabbing from offseason knee surgery. They also can go back to Washington, who hasn’t produced much in that role.
Head coach Mike Tomlin seemed to indicate Washington will get first crack at regaining his job.
“It’s also an opportunity for things to boomerang back around for James Washington, and I’m kind of excited about that to be quite honest with you,” Tomlin said. “Sometimes you get knocked down. You’ve got to get in the lab and work. Oftentimes that’s done in obscurity, if you will, and you wait for your opportunity to get back on and to ride again and show what you’re capable of. Not a lot of time on the shelf for James, and so it’s going to be exciting to watch him get back on this week and take advantage of someone else’s misfortune and be a positive contributor to our efforts. I’m excited about the potential inclusion of him again as well.”
–The Steelers continue to struggle with turnovers in recent weeks. They have committed eight turnovers in the past three games while only creating one. The minus-7 differential is one of the biggest reasons the Steelers are looking to end a two-game skid this week.
Tomlin is particularly concerned with his defense not creating turnovers. The defense has just 12 takeaways this season and none in the past two games.
“We’re in the process of working on it,” Tomlin said. “It’s done in a lot of ways. A lot of it is done by creating environments, putting the quarterback under duress and so forth. That’s one of the reasons I’ve been disappointed in the lack of turnovers, because the quarterback largely has been under duress in the games we’ve played. We’ve gotten after the quarterback. Our sack total is kind of a reflection of that. We’ve got to be more opportunistic. We’ve got to preach it. We’ve got to work it. The guys have got to deliver. We’re definitely not going to sit on our hands and wait patiently for it to occur. We’re going to actively seek it, which is what we’re doing.”
–The Steelers have a new player on their 53-man roster, but he’s a familiar face to rookie safety Terrell Edmunds. Running back Trey Edmunds is Terrell’s older brother and was signed from the practice squad after James Conner was ruled out for Sunday with an ankle injury.
Terrell and Trey also have another brother, Tremaine, who is a rookie for the Buffalo Bills.
All three brothers played together in high school in Virginia and in college at Virginia Tech. But there is a good chance Trey and Terrell will dress and play as teammates in a NFL game for the first time Sunday in Oakland.
“Just the opportunity to play with my brother is something special,” Trey said. “We don’t take it for granted.”
Terrell Edmunds has started 11 games this season. He has one interception and one sack, which he got last week against Phillip Rivers of the Chargers.
BY THE NUMBERS: 17 – Number of games receiver Antonio Brown has registered 10 catches and 100 receiving yards. Only Andre Johnson, who had 21 such games, has more in NFL history. Brown also went over the 1,000-yard mark for a sixth consecutive season and for the seventh time in his career.
