Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger sat out | Forum

Tuesday to give his broken left index finger a rest but he is expected to play on Thursday night when Carolina visits Heinz Field.Roethlisberger said the finger was “fine” after he threw the ball 47 times in last Sunday’s victory over Baltimore.He did leave the game briefly in the third quarter after getting the wind knocked out of him Lynn Swann Jersey , but he returned after missing just one snap.The 36-year-old is on pace to top 5,000 yards passing for the first time in his career. He came close in 2014 when he tied Drew Brees for the league lead with 4,952. Roethlisberger said reaching the 5,000-yard plateau “is still a pretty big deal” but he is keeping his focus on the team.The Steelers (5-2-1) have ripped off four straight wins to climb into first in the AFC North. The short week means they won’t have much time to prepare for the surging Panthers (6-2), which might not be a bad thing. Roethlisberger expects to rely a little more heavily on the no-huddle offense, a setup in which he thrives.“We’ve been doing it for a while,” Roethlisberger said. “We know it. We know it pretty well. We did it really well in Baltimore, really well Hines Ward Jersey , and just being able to pick up the pace and the tempo.”The Steelers often turn to the no-huddle in an effort to snap them out of a funk early in games, but Roethlisberger isn’t using it as a method of trying to get the ball downfield.While he’s on track to set a career high in yards, his production has dipped a bit during Pittsburgh’s winning streak. He’s gone over 300 yards just once in Pittsburgh’s past five games after going over 330 yards in each of the first three weeks.An improved defense has helped. Roethlisberger lit up scoreboards early because the Steelers were trying to keep up with opponents who had little trouble getting to the end zone.That’s not happening much anymore. Now that Roethlisberger isn’t tasked with trying to play catch up, the Steelers have taken a more balanced approach.Second-year running back James Conner is second in the NFL in yards from scrimmage and Roethlisberger is content to keep throwing the ball underneath to move the chains and keep Pittsburgh’s defense off the field. And just like that, Pittsburgh’s sluggish 1-2-1 start has become a distant memory.“There was no panic in this room early in the season,” Roethlisberger said. “That’s why we got a good chuckle out of (the media) panicking and the outside world panicking, but for us it was just a matter of playing the next week.”NOTES: Right tackle Marcus Gilbert (knee) did not practice and is unlikely to play, meaning Matt Feiler will make his third straight start. … NT Daniel McCullers (ankle) also did not practice. … WR Antonio Brown (coach’s decision) and WR Ryan Switzer (ankle) were limited. … WR James Washington (knee) was a full participant.Steelers Film Room: James Conner proves he was never the problem James Conner didn't do much on the ground in Weeks 2 through 4 Heath Miller Jersey , and he was being blamed for the majority of it. Really? People thought Conner was the issue? He wasn't the issue -- one of the issues was play-calling. The Steelers ran far too many plays to the inside which didn't always suit Conner’s strengths, and now that they're getting him outside in space, he can use his balance and burst to do much more than just running between the tackles every play. The other issue was simply offensive-line play. Marcus Gilbert and David DeCastro each missing games was no help to Conner at all. The Steelers overall have been among the league’s lower half of run-blocking teams according to PFF, and it's clear to see. Conner was hit behind the line too many times over the past three weeks.Finally, with a fully healthy line for the first time since Week 1, James Conner found more success than he has at anytime this season, and you can tell he's a starting-caliber running back. This guy is 100% a starter. He has all the aspects you want in a RB. First, vision and burst Louis Lipps Jersey , Exhibit A:Beautiful tuck inside by Conner on this play as he reads that hole opening up at the last second. If he doesn’t read that, it's a decent gain but nowhere near the run he gets. I love how once he gets to the second level you see that next-level burst from him. He absolutely can be a big- play threat, and that shows differentiation from Le’Veon Bell as a whole. Not everyone is born with vision, but Conner has it and it's only improved as the season has gone on. But where Conner has really improved is in the receiving game. He has 22 catches for 239 yards receiving. Compare that to last year when he could barely catch, but now he's motioning out wide and catching passes for first downs. His evolution from just a pure runner to a lean, receiving back has been a fun transition to watch as this season has progressed.The Steelers love to run plays like this with Le’Veon Bell out of the slot. It's a simple bunch-set with an inside trailing route as the two receivers on the right side are “screening” for Conner to take this quick catch and get the first down. The best part, aside from the easy catch Conner makes away from his body, is the extra yards he fights for at the end of the play. A high level of effort plus a high level of talent will get you places. But that's not even the best part of Conner’s game. By far Heath Miller Jersey , it's his balance through contact. The balance he shows is at an elite level, no matter how you slice it. He has some incredible strength and power to go with that strong center of gravity. It's not always easy to find players with balance like this. They ran this pitch-play with much success on Sunday. I don't necessarily like the play, but it gets Conner in space and allows him to take advantage of his incredible balance and burst. You can see it all on display on this particular play, and he just keeps powering through. Conner was truly impressive vs. the Falcons in Week 5. But there was a play combining all of his talents into one, and it was an absolute beauty to watch. This one might make top-5 RB plays of the year folks.Hello James Conner. He runs straight over people, cuts it up to get the best lane to the first down and then powers through others to get even more yardage. Backup RBs simply don't do things like this. I'm not saying James Conner will be a star, but he's absolutely a starting RB, and certainly isn't the problem with the Steelers’ running game.Part of it was how the Steelers fell down early in most of the games when Conner was ineffective but John Stallworth Jersey , in reality, Conner always grinded out as many yards as he could. He's never been, and never will be, the problem. This guy is not only a great story, but a great football player too.