PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 25: Ben Roethlisberger #7 of the Pittsburgh Steelers drops back to pass in the first half during the game against the Baltimore Ravens at Heinz Field on December 25, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Week 10 of the NFL season kicked off with the Thursday night bombardment of the Carolina Panthers defense by Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburg Steelers.
After beating the (6-3) Carolina Panthers 52-21, the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2-1) continued to prove why they are the leaders of the AFC North as they stretched their winning streak to five games.
In what may have been his best game ever, Pittsburgh’s Roethlisberger completed 22 of 25 throws for 328 yards and five touchdowns to five different receivers.
Big Ben also achieved a perfect 158.3 passer rating for the fourth time in his 15-year career.
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“Well, if you’re looking at stats — probably,” Roethlisberger said when asked if this was his best game ever. “But, you know what? Guys make plays. I’m only gonna be as good as the linemen are and the guys making the plays for me.”
The Panthers got off to a hot start by slicing through the Steelers defense for 75 yards and a touchdown on the opening drive, but Pittsburgh quickly responded by scoring 24 consecutive points.
This was the first time in Pittsburgh’s hot streak that running back James Conner didn’t rush for at least 100 yards, but this was mostly because he didn’t need to.
Big Ben spread the wealth among his receivers including a 53-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Brown that put the Steelers up 31-14 going into the half.
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Panthers starting quarterback Cam Newton ended the night with 23-of-29 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns and an interception for a 103.0 passer rating.
This is Newton’s sixth game this season with a passer rating over 100 (he had five all of last year).
Newton was sacked a season-high five times as the Steelers defense blitzed relentlessly.
“I was just trying to throw the ball away. When you are getting slung around you can’t really control the accuracy,” Newton said. “I didn’t know if I was in the end zone or not and I didn’t want to get an intentional grounding. The first person I saw was Greg [Olsen] and I was just trying to throw it at his feet. The ball takes off in ways you don’t want it to.”
The Panthers have now fallen 1.5 games behind the NFC South-leading New Orleans Saints (7-1). Carolina will head to Michigan next week to take on a struggling Detroit Lions (3-5) team that’s caught in a two-game losing streak. The game will air Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EST on Fox.
The Pittsburgh offense could be altered drastically in the coming days with all-pro running back Le’Veon Bell expected to rejoin the team by Tuesday’s deadline.
The Steelers have extended their AFC North lead over Cincinnati Bengals (5-3) to a full game while giving them the fourth-best record in the conference heading into the weekend.
Pittsburgh will head to Florida next Sunday to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars (3-5), who are enthralled in a four-game losing streak. The game will air on CBS at 1:00 p.m. EST.
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