Roethlisberger's 18-yard scramble was, for me, the best play of the season. He made a spectacular move in the pocket to spin away from linebacker Chris Kelsay, who beat offensive tackle Flozell Adams to the outside. An instant later, feeling pressure from defensive end Marcus Stroud who was chasing him with foul intentions, he sprinted to his right.
...
Roethlisberger's work continued on the sideline after that drive. Four plays after his scramble, Sanders dropped a third-down pass that would have gone for a first down and maybe a touchdown. The kid was inconsolable coming off the field.
"I told him, 'I'm coming back to you. Don't let it happen again, but I'm coming back to you,' " Roethlisberger said.
Great run, and given BBR's gimp wheel could indeed be one of the plays of the year.
But the other part is misleading feel-good BS. Ben may well be ready to go back and find Sanders again, but Arians isn't. It's a full five minutes after the drop that Ben completes a 17-yarder to Manny, and then doesn't look his way again in the 4Q or OT. My feeling has been that when 17 or 88 drop a pass, BA gets the yips and doesn't go back to them, undermining their confidence and never getting the passing game fully developed. Like it or not, those two guys are the future of our receiving corps, and if our OC can't take the attitude of his QB, it's going to be much rougher in the long run.
Me, I'd go right back to 17 again and again. And frankly, Sanders hasn't scared me off either. Give these guys their shots, Brucie. I can almost guarantee you that after a misfire, BA will call 83 or 86 as a security blanket call, and opposing defenses can smell it. Not to mention the general inanity and predictability of the down and distance playcalling in general.
