Ben Roethlisberger praises Steelers WRs for final drive vs. Bills

Given a chance to run out the clock or pad their lead in the fourth quarter Sunday at Buffalo, the Pittsburgh Steelers tried to accomplish a little bit of each objective.

And they relied on the arm of 18-year veteran quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to get it done.

The result was a field goal that provided a 10-point advantage in an eventual 23-16 victory, and it happened with the Steelers leaving the Bills with less than three minutes remaining.

Three days after the Steelers humbled the Bills on Buffalo’s home field, Roethlisberger deflected credit for the proverbial knockout punch to his wide receivers. Playing with a group that returned all five members from 2020, Roethlisberger said it was the receivers’ collective fortitude that made the final drive possible — and successful.

“Each guy contributed on that drive,” Roethlisberger said Wednesday morning. “To me, that shows the growth and maturity of these guys. Early on, it wasn’t going well, but they didn’t let it bother them. They were still there at the end of the game when it mattered the most to make plays.”

Roethlisberger said the receivers could have become disengaged after a first half in which the offense generated just 54 total yards and three first downs. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson and James Washington combined to catch all six completions (in 12 attempts) from Roethlisberger while mustering 46 receiving yards.

The offense awakened in the second half when the Steelers got points on all four possessions, turning that deficit into a 20-10 advantage thanks to a blocked punt returned for a touchdown.

When the Bills responded with a field goal to pull within a touchdown, there were 5 minutes, 23 seconds left to play. An extended drive by Roethlisberger would keep Buffalo’s Josh Allen-led offense on the sideline.

“I think a lot of people anticipated us running the ball and using clock,” Roethlisberger said.

The Steelers did the opposite. On the eight plays that preceded Chris Boswell’s 45-yard field goal, Roethlisberger dropped back to pass five times. Two other plays were designed runs for first-round pick Najee Harris. The other was a Roethlisberger scramble that gained 8 yards.

On a second-and-7 from the Steelers 33, Roethlisberger hooked up with Smith-Schuster for a 24-yard gain. Facing a third-and-8 from the Bills 41, Roethlisberger found Chase Claypool for a 14-yard completion.

This first down forced the Bills to start using their timeouts, and they had none left when they got the ball back. An incompletion on second down stopped the clock, but a 1-yard completion to Washington on third down forced Buffalo to use its third timeout and set up Boswell’s field goal with 2:42 to play.

“If any of those guys would have kind of been pouting or shut it down because they were disappointed or upset that they weren’t getting the ball, we wouldn’t have been able to be successful on that drive,” Roethlisberger said. “Instead, we used up however many minutes, and we took the ball down the field and kicked the field goal.”

Roethlisberger leaned the heaviest on Johnson and Smith-Schuster, who were targeted a combined 18 times and totaled nine catches for 86 yards. Claypool, the team’s third starting receiver, caught three of five targets for 45 yards and drew a 26-yard pass interference penalty in the fourth quarter on a drive that set up the go-ahead touchdown — a 5-yard reception by Johnson.

It helps that Smith-Schuster is in his fifth year, Washington his fourth, Johnson his third and Claypool his second.

“When you’re talking about the maturation process of individuals or a collective, none of it is haphazard,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “I spent a lot of time talking to Chase Claypool about taking the step from Year One to Year Two, specifically, for example.

“Mentality is a component of it. Poise is a component of it. Understanding the ebb and flow that is professional football and the opportunities or lack thereof at times is a very real thing. Kudos to those guys, but nothing happens haphazardly.”