Roethlisberger getting 2nd crack at Jaguars
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Three months ago, in a stunning 30-9 home loss to the Jaguars, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger saw five of his 55 passes intercepted and two of those picks run back for touchdowns.
Afterward he said, “Maybe I don’t have it anymore.”
Roethlisberger rebounded in a big way, however, and helped his team earn the No. 2 seed in the AFC. Sunday, he gets his chance to avenge that humiliating loss.
“Ben is the most talented guy I’ve ever been around,” receiver Darrius HeywardBey told reporters last week. “I’m not talking quarterback; I’m talking about talent. He can do a lot of different things. He believes in his ability and he’s going to show people he believes in himself.”
The Steelers went 10-1 down the stretch, with Roethlisberger throwing multiple touchdown passes in seven consecutive games.
The revenge angle is undeniable, even if Roethlisberger isn’t talking about it.
“Just as any competitor would, when you have a bad outing or a difficult outing against a team, you want that revenge,” Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles said. “You want to prove it was a fluke or whatever it might be. I’m sure that’s probably what he’s thinking.” JAGUARS AT STEELERS
It will be the best on the best when Steelers receiver Antonio Brown, the NFL’s only unanimous All-Pro, lines up against the stellar Jaguars secondary, which led the league in pass defense at 169.9 yards per game.
At the corners for the Jaguars are Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye, two of the best in the NFL, and both figure to see their share of the sure-handed Brown, who has been nursing a calf injury and was sent home from practice Friday because of an illness.
“Great opportunity to see what I can do,” Ramsey said. “He’s an elite player, highly regarded by everybody around the nation, so it’s going to be a challenge. We’re going (to) have to be on our P’s and Q’s and try to execute the game plan the best we can.”
It’s dicey to pick against the Steelers at home in a marquee game, but the Jaguars are in position to pull off an upset. If Brown isn’t at full speed, the Steelers offense is compromised. They will do everything they can to force Bortles to beat them, but he has improved.