Steelers add to Jags misery in 17-13 win

John Frary, ESPN Radio

Two rookie offensive tackles started in Pittsburgh for Jacksonville on Sunday. The results showed it. The Steelers sacked rookie Jaguars quarterback Blaine Gabbert 5 times and defeated Jacksonville 17-13. The Jaguars lost their 5^th straight this season. The first time that has happen since 2001.

The 1^st half was totally dominated by the Steelers. The Jaguars defense gave up 316 yards and 17 points during the 1^st half. Pittsburgh scored on their first three offensive possessions and sliced and diced the Jaguars defense up and down the field. They had drives of 87, 72 and 69 yards in building a 17-0 lead.

Ben Roethlisberger completed a crossing pattern to Emmanuel Sanders for 32 yards and Rashard Mendenhall had 6 carries for 26 yards and scored a touchdown on a 7 yard run to begin the scoring and put Pittsburgh ahead 7-0.

The Steelers would waste little time adding to their lead. They scored again on their next possession in the 1^st quarter on a 28 yard touchdown pass from Ben Roethlisberger to Mike Wallace. The Steelers receivers were running free and loose in the Jaguars secondary often in the 1^st half. Roethlisberger could have had an even bigger day if not for overthrowing several wide open Steelers receivers throughout the game.

Pittsburgh would tack on a field goal in the 2^nd quarter and was up 17-0. Rashard Mendenhall had a career high 68 yard run down to Jacksonville’s 2 yard line, but the Jaguars defense were able to force a Steelers’ field goal attempt. Roethlisberger overthrew Antonio Brown on 3^rd and goal at the 3 yard line.

At this point in the game, a Pittsburgh blowout seemed inevitable. However, Jacksonville fought back and never quit. Maurice Jones-Drew had a 19 and 6 yard run on consecutive plays. Josh Scobee continued his perfect year and made two more field goals.

The first one was from 46 yards out midway through the 2^nd quarter. The Jaguars were still trailing by 14 at halftime 17-3. The second half was entirely different. The Jaguars defense only allowed 54 total yards in a gallant comeback attempt.

They sacked Ben Roethlisberger 3 times and harassed on several other passing attempts in the 3^rd and 4^th quarters. The Steelers committed a roughing the kicker penalty on a 4^th and 21 at Jacksonville’s 20 yard line. That penalty allowed Jacksonville to continue a offensive drive late in the 3^rd quarter.

The Jaguars capitalized on their good fortune and went 80 yards for a touchdown. Blaine Gabbert found Jason Hill wide open in the end zone on a 18 yard slant that cut the Steelers lead to seven. Gabbert looked very impressive staying in the pocket under heavy pressured and received a big hit on the touchdown pass. Gabbert also scrambled for 4 yards and made a 1^st down on a 4^th and 2 from Pittsburgh’s 43 yard line.

It was only a one score game heading into the 4^th quarter. The Jaguars defense continued to clamp down on Pittsburgh’s offense in the 4^th quarter. The Jaguars defense came into the game ranked 8^th in the league. Unlike the 1^st half, they resembled that ranking in the 2^nd half.

A critical decision by Jaguars head coach came with 4:23 left in the 4^th quarter. The ball was at Pittsburgh’s 27 yard line. The Jaguars called timeout on a 4^th down and 6 yards to go. It appeared they would go for it.

During the timeout, they opted for a field goal instead. Josh Scobee made a 45 yard field goal and Pittsburgh’s lead was down to four 17-13. The Jaguars and Jack Del Rio gambled they could stop Pittsburgh and get the ball back with one last attempt at victory.

They couldn’t force a 3 and out and had to use their remaining two timeouts. They finally did force Pittsburgh to punt, but there was only 1:02 left at this point. A patchwork Jaguars offensive line would be suspect one last time on the final drive.

Brett Keisel sacked Blaine Gabbert on Jacksonville’s 13 yard line. The linebacker came through untouched and the sack cost the Jaguars valuable time. The Jaguars were able to move the ball into Pittsburgh territory on a on a 18 yard completion to Mike Thomas.

Blaine Gabbert dropped back from Pittsburgh’s 48 yard line and heaved a Hail Mary attempt with :02 left towards the Steelers end zone. The pass was overthrown by 10 yards and the Steelers hung on and won 17-13.

Once again, the Jaguars fell short this season. The loss drops them to 1-5. The Steelers improved to 4-2. “It sucks, good thing is we kept fighting, had a couple of shots at the end of the game, didn’t get it done” stated wide receiver Mike Thomas.

“It was things basically done better in second half, settle down and do things better, fought back, wasn’t enough” was head coach Jack Del Rio’s comments after the game. Del Rio went on to say “not made enough plays to win, look at game in Carolina, look at Cincinnati, falls on my shoulders, it’s a win-loss business, were not winning, I’ll take the blame.”

The season is spiraling out of control faster than a roller coaster. The Jaguars appeared listless in the 1^st half. They now must face a very good Ravens defense in front of a national audience on Monday night. Things couldn’t appear much worse in Jacksonville right now, especially for a head coach on the hot seat.

Game notes: Blaine Gabbert went 12/26 for 109 yards and one touchdown. Maurice Jones-Drew rushed for 96 yards on 22 carries. Mike Thomas led Jacksonville in receiving with 4 catches and 36 yards. Paul Posluszny had 16 tackles at linebacker for the Jaguars. Matt Roth, Tyson Alualu and John Chick each had a sack. Ben Roethlisberger went 12/23 for 200 yards and one touchdown for Pittsburgh. Rashard Mendenhall gained 146 yards on 23 rushing attempts for the Steelers. Mike Wallace had 2 receptions for 76 yards. Lamar Woodley and Brett Keisel each had 2 sacks for the Steelers.

Injury update: A brutal day for the Jaguars offensive line. Rookies Cameron Bradfield and William Rackley started for Eugene Monroe and Eben Britton at left and right offensive tackle. Britton’s back locked up on game day and Monroe was active, but still recovering from a neck injury the previous week. Both tackles will be reevaluated during the week. Derek Cox didn’t start at corner back and special team players Montel Owens and Kassim Osgood weren’t active either. Aaron Kampman saw his first action of the season at defensive end in the 1^st quarter.

Upcoming schedule: The Jaguars return to EverBank Field Monday, October 24 against the Baltimore Ravens. The game will be nationally broadcast on ESPN.

Final analysis: Another disappointing finish. The Jaguars came up short at the end of the game once again. The 1^st half was totally inexcusable. The team appeared listless. I didn’t sense any urgency on a team that was 1-4 coming in. The game was 14-0 midway through the 1^st quarter and this is a team not built to make those kinds of comebacks. The Jaguars fought back admirably and did have a chance at the end of the game. I didn’t like the timeout Jack Del Rio called on a 4^th and 6 from Pittsburgh’s 27 yard line late in the 4^th quarter. You need to know what you’re going to do before those situations come up. I agreed with the decision to kick the field goal and cut the lead to 17-13, but that timeout used was costly. Ultimately, the time has come for a coaching and general management change in Jacksonville. It seems like I say this each and every week now. I did like the defensive effort in the second half. Marcedes Lewis signed a huge contract extension before the season and only has 10 receptions in 5 games. That’s not nearly enough from the tight end.