After throwing five interceptions in their 30-9 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers veteran quarterback Ben Roethlisberger reflected on his horrible performance, saying “maybe I don't have it anymore,”, according to Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com. When asked to elaborate further on his comment, the veteran signal-caller added: "I'm not playing well enough.” Roethlisberger struggled against the tough Jaguars’ defense, throwing five interceptions, with two returned for touchdowns. He completed 33 of 55 passes for 315 yards while the Steelers tallied just three field goals as they dropped to 3-2.
According to NFL Research, Roethlisberger is one of two quarterbacks who had zero touchdowns and five-plus interceptions in a game since Ryan Fitzpatrick did it in 2016.
Before this game, Roethlisberger completed 87 of 140 passes for 957 yards and six touchdowns with two interceptions for a quarterback rating of 90.7 in the first four weeks of the season. During that span, the Steelers had a 3-1 mark. Roethlisberger’s statement could fuel rumors that this could be his last year with the Steelers and might retire at the end of the season. According to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the veteran quarterback refused to commit to playing beyond the 2017 season.
Rookie rusher steps up for Jaguars
Rookie running back Leonard Fournette carried the ball 28 times for 181 yards and two touchdowns as the Jaguars improved to 3-2. Telvin Smith and Barry Church returned two of Roethlisberger’s five interceptions for 28- and 51-yard touchdowns, respectively. Starting quarterback Blake Bortles completed eight of 14 passes for 95 yards and an interception while Marqise Lee caught two passes for 49 yards for the Jaguars.
Antonio Brown only bright spot for Steelers
Days after he apologized for his tantrum on the sidelines during their 26-9 win over the Baltimore Ravens, wide receiver Antonio Brown caught 10 passes for 157 yards while JuJu Smith-Schuster received four passes for 58 yards for the Steelers. Le’Veon Bell ran 15 times for 47 yards while Chris Boswell delivered the offense for the Steelers with three field goals.
In the first, Boswell put the Steelers on the board with a 29-yard field goal before Fournette put the Jaguars ahead with a two-yard scoring run. Two more field goals by Boswell gave the Steelers a 9-7 lead but it was all Jaguars from there as they scored 23 consecutive points, capped by Fournette’s 90-yard scoring run in the fourth.