As the picture comes into focus on what the Steelers' offense might look like this season with Randy Fichtner as the new offensive coordinator, it's become more apparent it's exactly what everyone assumed it would be.
As expected, this is Ben Roethlisberger's offense.
"He's in full control," said Ravens safety Eric Weddle, who also is one of Roethlisberger's closest friends in the league -- they share the same agent. "When they protect him and he gets in those runs, he's one of the best to do it. It's fun to watch as a fan of football. But when you're playing against him, it keeps you up late at night trying to figure out ways to make it hard on him."
That's what's happening in Baltimore this week as the Ravens (2-1) come to Heinz Field Sunday to face the Steelers (1-1-1).
Roethlisberger, who was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week Wednesday for his 353-yard, three-touchdown game in a 30-27 win over Tampa Bay Monday night, is as hot as just about any quarterback in the league. His 1,140 passing yards are the second-most in the league behind Tampa Bay's Ryan Fitzpatrick and both rank among the top-four in NFL history in yards passing in the first three weeks of a season.
The scary thing is that Roethlisberger has done so without Antonio Brown having his typical output. While Brown's 24 receptions rank second in the AFC -- behind teammate JuJu Smith-Schuster's 27 -- he has just 210 yards in the Steelers' first three games. The Steelers have had receivers top 100 yards five times in their first three games, yet none of them are Brown. Smith-Schuster has topped 100 yards in each of the team's first three games -- and past five regular season games overall -- while tight ends Jesse James and Vance McDonald each have done so once.
"Other guys (are) stepping up and playing well," Roethlisberger said. "When other guys are making plays and making catches and being in the right spot, you do not feel like you have to give the ball to A.B. every time."
Thing is, the offense itself isn't all that different, at least not according to the Ravens, but it is obvious that Roethlisberger is in charge.
"Yeah," Weddle said when I asked him if that was the case. "It just seems like he has more control. He's comfortable. He's able to get in and out of plays he likes and doesn't like, whether it's checking into a different run or to a pass with an audible. You can definitely tell he likes what they're doing offensively and with their offensive coordinator. He's been there a while, taking control of the play calls, it definitely shows."
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh agreed he's not seeing drastic changes when watching the film from the Steelers' first three games.
"It's the same basic offense," Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh said. "Randy's been there for a number of years and I'm sure he's had a ton of input in the past. I think they've built on that. There's always certain evolutions that coaches make with schemes. I think they're in that natural process."
What will be interesting is if the Ravens can find a way to stymie it or at least slow Roethlisberger.
He's won his past three starts against the Ravens, including posting a 506-yard game against them at Heinz Field last Dec. 10 in a 39-38 victory, the highest-scoring in the history of these two franchises.
Roethlisberger attempted 66 passes in that game. This season, he's averaging just under 45 pass attempts per game. Roethlisberger is just 2-5 in his career against the Ravens when he attempts 40 or more passes.
But in today's NFL, the more you throw it, the better. Or at least that's how it's been thus far, with seven teams -- including the Steelers -- averaging 29 or more points per game this season.
"That's just the league in general from where it was 10 years ago, where it was ball control, run the ball, play good defense and take deep shots," Weddle said. "Now, it's spread them out, get the ball in your best players' hands and let them make plays. When you have a special quarterback like Ben, why not? You trust your quarterback who's been a Super Bowl champion and you trust he's going to make the right decision with the ball and you roll. He's shown through three games -- and throughout his whole career -- when they've been down, he can do it."
Whether that will work against the Ravens remains to be seen. Baltimore enters Sunday night's game with the NFL's No. 1-rated defense, allowing 273 yards per game. But that number was bolstered greatly by a 47-3 win over Buffalo at home in Week 1 when the Bills managed just 153 yards of total offense.
That game came against the likes of second-year quarterback Nathan Peterman and rookie Josh Allen. Peterman, a former Pitt star, was making his second career start, while Allen was seeing his first NFL action.
The Ravens expect a much more difficult game against the 36-year-old Roethlisberger, who has 203 career games -- 201 of them starts -- in his career.
"Shoot, I've seen him for a lot of years," said Weddle, who has faced Roethlisberger eight times in his 12-year career, four games each with the Chargers and Ravens.
"Each year, he's getting better and better as he gets up there in age. Age is just a number with him."
