Steelers To Start Jones, Leave 'Slight' Opening For Roethlisberger Against Browns
By Christina Rivers
The Pittsburgh Steelers hope to move one step closer to the wild card playoff picture on Sunday when they host the Cleveland Browns. The Steelers will once again be without veteran quarterback Ben Roethlisberger who suffered a mid-foot sprain during the Week 9 game against the Oakland Raiders. Head coach Mike Tomlin spoke on areas of focus for the team this week, including who is likely to play in place of Roethlisberger. While there is the smallest of chances Big Ben would be allowed to play, Tomlin indicated that the team is not looking that direction.
After opening his statements talking about areas where his team did well versus areas that could use more work, Tomlin was quick to address the quarterback situation heading into Week 10. "We are evaluating Ben Roethlisberger. He is continuing to be evaluated today," Tomlin said on Tuesday. "We will leave the door ajar for him, but it's just slightly ajar. I think it's prudent that we anticipate playing without him and preparing to play with Landry Jones." Roethlisberger, in his weekly appearance on the Cook and Poni show on Sportsradio 97.3 The Fan, said, "I'm not even going to rule myself out this week...I'm going to take it one day at a time." Roethlisberger added, "I can walk on (my foot). I'm not running around or anything but the smart thing to do, from what doc has told me and the trainers is just to kinda keep ice on it and get the swelling out and just kind of rest it, let it heal."
Conventional wisdom would say that fully resting the foot would be to allow Jones or Mike Vick run the offense against the 2-7 Browns on Sunday, but Roethlisberger has always been less than conventional. "We will let (Roethlisberger) go through his process and will continue to communicate; but from a planning structure standpoint, much like it was a couple of weeks ago, we are preparing to play with Landry (Jones)." Tomlin added that getting Vick prepared was also a priority.
Jones was able to come in against the Raiders to secure the win after Roethlisberger was forced from the field. Tomlin and the entire Steelers coaching staff want to see him win again this week. One area that isn't a focus is the the flair Jones has in his style. "You can get lost worrying about style points and quality of play," Tomlin said. "I want him to do what is required for us to win." Tomlin pointed out that in making it a black and white issue, the issue is "crystal-clear" as to what is expected. Jones has not run much no-huddle while in a regular season game this season, but Tomlin said he and offensive coordinator Todd Haley aren't opposed to the idea. "Nobody has accumulated more preseason snaps in 2015 than Landry Jones," Tomlin restated. "We'll let production over the course of the week be our guide, in terms of utilization and that and every other aspect of our offense."
Tomlin has been clear about what he thinks is most important regardless of circumstances on who is playing at quarterback. "We made a conscious effort to take care of the ball even at the expense of being dynamic offensively, or even being interesting," Tomlin explained. "If we take care of the football, that's usually a good recipe for us." Fans had expressed curiosity over what appeared to be a very conservative approach when using Jones and Vick, and Tomlin verified the team wants to limit potential turnovers.
In his time as both the starting quarterback and as relief to both Roethlisberger and Vick, Jones completed 28 of 47 attempted passes for 456 yards and three touchdowns. At Arrowhead Stadium, a notably difficult place to play due to home crowd noise, Jones threw two interceptions. Heinz Field may be a friendlier environment, but regardless, the expectations will not change; Jones will be expected to do everything he can to execute and run the offense efficiently.
Christina Rivers has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers and National Football League professionally as a journalist and photographer for over a decade. Rivers studied Exercise Physiology and Sports Psychology at Brigham Young University as a student-athlete. Christina is a freelance writer covering all things NFL as well as a published author. Her work can be found on
Examiner.com.
