Quarterback: Coach Mike Tomlin had been fond of saying his rookie quarterback “didn’t kill us.” Well, Duck Hodges finally made critical errors that cost the Steelers a game. The biggest one came while leading 10-7. Hodges threw an interception to Tre’Davious White, who returned it 49 yards to set up the tying field goal. After another failed series that resulted in a punt, the Bills took the lead on their next series. Hodges just didn’t make enough plays after his big mistake. He finished with four interceptions, including two in the final two minutes.
Grade: F
Running backs: James Conner returned to the lineup and caught a touchdown pass, but the running game struggled. The Bills defense is stout, but other teams had success against them in the running game. This was an area the Steelers had to exploit, and they failed miserably. Whether it was rust on Conner’s part or merely a change in the rotation, the running backs couldn’t muster much against the Bills’ front. Conner ended up getting the bulk of the carries and finished with 42 yards on eight carries.
Grade: C
Receivers: Diontae Johnson’s fumble near the end of the first half was costly for the Steelers. That was the biggest miscue of the game, but the receivers didn’t have much going all night against the Bills’ secondary. James Washington had a 34-yard catch in the first half that set up a field goal and a 32-yarder in the fourth quarter that gave the Steelers a chance. But the Steelers need more from the other receivers. Other than a 29-yard catch by Johnson, there just wasn’t enough production from this group.
Grade: C-
Offensive line: The pass protection was subpar. Hodges was sacked four times and was under duress for most of the game. The run-blocking wasn’t much better. The Bills entered the game with the NFL’s third-best defense overall, but they were 15th against the run. The Steelers needed to exploit the Bills in the run game. When they couldn’t, that left it up to Hodges, who wasn’t up to the task.
Grade: D
Defensive line: The Steelers only dressed four defensive linemen, sitting rookie reserve Isaiah Buggs in favor of dressing an extra running back. That left it up to the four linemen that dressed to eat up all the snaps. That’s probably not the reason the Bills rushed for 130 yards, but the line couldn’t slow down the run, and that slowed the Bills to control parts of the game.
Grade: B-
Linebackers: T.J. Watt had a huge forced fumble, stripping running back Devin Singletary when the Bills were threatening to score midway through the third quarter. Watt also had a half sack and two tackles for loss. Vince Williams also had a half sack. It was a quiet game for Bud Dupree when they needed him to make more noise.
Grade: B-
Secondary: Steven Nelson had his first interception of the season, but he also gave a up a 40-yard pass to John Brown in the fourth quarter that set up the Bills’ go-ahead touchdown. On the winning touchdown, tight end Tyler Kroft was left wide open in the end zone on third-and-9, a breakdown in coverage that ended up being costly. Safety Terrell Edmunds was late getting to his zone, and Kroft had an easy catch. It wasn’t a bad game for the secondary. Josh Allen only had 139 yards passing, but he made some crucial throws when he needed them in the fourth quarter to get his team the win.
Grade: C
Special teams: When you have a young offense that struggles to move the ball, the special teams have to be superb, and Jordan Berry’s play the past two weeks has been anything but. A week after his fake punt gaffe in Arizona, Berry shanked a 22-yarder that gave the Bills the ball at the Steelers’ 40-yard line late in the first quarter. The Bills capitalized on the mistake and took a 7-0 lead on Josh Allen’s 1-yard run. Chris Boswell booted a 49-yard field goal in the first half, continuing his stellar season. The coverage teams kept the Bills’ return game in check. If not for Berry’s poor play, this would have been a strong game.
Grade: C-
Coaching: One bad decision hung over Heinz Field Sunday night like a wet blanket. With first-and-goal at the Buffalo 10 at the two-minute warning, offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner used the wildcat with Conner taking the snap. It was a disaster from the start — a low snap followed by a botched handoff to Diontae Johnson. The decision to use the wildcat in that situation was bad enough, but having Conner do it was the worst part of the decision. He had never run the wildcat until last week in practice. Jaylen Samuels has been doing it all year. Why make a change? Talk about taking the air out of a stadium. Fichtner single-handedly silenced the crowd himself with that move. Then with 3:00 left in the game, after the Steelers had a first-and-10 at the Bills’ 26, the Steelers got a delay of game penalty. Tomlin had two timeouts left. One of them should have been used there. The Steelers quickly went backward and turned the ball over on downs.
Grade: D
First Published: December 16, 2019, 4:35 a.m.
Updated: December 16, 2019, 4:39 a.m.
