The Pittsburgh Steelers were one of the most aggressive teams during the offseason. They went and got Aaron Rodgers, DK Metcalf and Jonnu Smith to shore up the offense. Then on defense, their biggest acquisition was arguably trading for a disgruntled Jalen Ramsey from the Miami Dolphins.
Only a few of those moves seemed to pay off against the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday Night Football in Week 7.
Rodgers nearly pulled off a late fourth-quarter comeback, with the Steelers taking a 31-30 lead with 2:21 remaining after connecting with Pat Freiermuth on a 68-yard touchdown pass. He finished the night 23 of 34 for 249 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.
Smith caught one of those touchdowns, finishing with three receptions for 28 yards. Metcalf was second in receiving with three catches for 50 yards, continuing to show flashes of the big-play potential that made Pittsburgh take a swing for him this past offseason.
But on the other side of the ball, Ramsey had a rough night—one that could easily be labeled his worst performance as a Steeler.
“Jalen Ramsey’s been cooked all night,” SI’s Albert Breer posted, just after Joe Flacco connected with Tee Higgins on a 28-yard reception to put the ball at the Pittsburgh 35-yard line. A few plays later, the Bengals took the lead for good on a 36-yard field goal, sealing the 33-31 win.
Jalen Ramsey Couldn’t Stop Bengals Passing Attack
Flacco, 40, who had only been with the Bengals a total of 10 days after being traded from the Cleveland Browns, looked comfortable picking apart the Steelers’ secondary and seemed to target Ramsey often. He finished the night 31 of 47 for 342 yards with three touchdowns and no turnovers.
But the real difference came from his two star receivers, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, who combined for 22 catches on 33 targets for 257 yards and two touchdowns. Flacco made it simple: throw to the playmakers and let them work.
Ramsey was responsible for several of those big plays, particularly on scoring drives. In the second quarter, he was called for pass interference on Chase—but it didn’t matter, as the Bengals receiver scored regardless. Then, on Cincinnati’s final drive before halftime, Ramsey was once again beaten by Chase, giving up two catches for 21 yards that helped set up a field goal.
According to Pro Football Focus, Ramsey finished with a 54.7 defensive grade and a 47.4 coverage grade—his lowest marks of the season. He allowed four receptions on five targets for 35 yards, including 22 yards after the catch. Those numbers could be updated in the next 24 hours, but the tape won’t do him many favors.
Jalen Ramsey Is Coming Off Career Performance Against Browns
Ramsey had been dealing with a hamstring injury prior to the Browns game in Week 6. But that didn’t stop him from having one of the best performances of his career that week.
For the first time in his NFL career, Ramsey recorded two sacks in a single game during the Steelers’ 23-9 win over Cleveland—a performance that drew glowing praise from head coach Mike Tomlin (h/t Steelers Nation).
“We certainly wanted to make sure he could impact the game,” Tomlin said afterward. “I cannot say enough about Jalen Ramsey, guys. This guy plays outside corner, he plays nickel, he plays free safety. He is exactly what we hoped he would be, and certainly, he was significant today.”
After Thursday night’s performance, though, it’s doubtful Tomlin will be giving such enthusiastic endorsements. Ramsey’s hamstring issues could again be a factor, but at age 30, it’s fair to wonder whether the three-time All-Pro corner is starting to decline.
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