Welcome to the Pittsburgh Steelers vs Dallas Cowboys Preview! This is your one stop shop for everything you need to know about the Steelers and their upcoming opponent! Mike Drakulich of Pittsburgh SportsNation brings you inside the huddle for both teams, provides a game outlook, score prediction, individual stats, team stats, Fantasy Football impact, the most up-to-date injury report, and even the weather at kickoff! The only thing you’re missing is a game ticket!
A look at the Pittsburgh Steelers!
Overall Record: 4-4
Head Coach: Mike Tomlin (10th Season with Steelers)
Overall Regular Season Record: 96-56 (.632)
Playoff Record: 6-5 (Qualified for playoffs 6 times)
2016 Pittsburgh Steelers Roster
Last Week: Baltimore 21 Pittsburgh 14
Breakdown of the Steelers: Ben Roethlisberger looks to get the Steeler offense back on track after a disappointing loss to Baltimore last week. Pittsburgh has lost their last three games after a 4-1 start.
Antonio Brown is not where he would like to be in terms of stats or play. He, along with Big Ben, are hoping to light up a Dallas secondary minus two of it’s starters. With both Markus Wheaton and Darrius Heyward-Bey out, Sammie Coates and Eli Rogers will be expected to pick up the slack. The Steelers will gain a valuable weapon to their arsenal as tight end Ladarius Green will make his season debut. Green was signed to a big contract in the off-season, and Roethlisberger has to be pleased to have a 6’7 target that can run a 4.4 lurking in the Dallas secondary.
Le’Veon Bell will be the workhorse, and will need to be, as DeAngelo Williams will sit with a nagging knee injury. Bell is capable of burning any defense via the ground or air.
The Steelers’ offense is averaging 32.6 points per game in the three home games Big Ben has started this season. In those games, he has thrown 12 touchdown passes and only two interceptions.
Defensively, the Steelers played well last week in Baltimore, despite giving up a 95 yard catch and run to Mike Wallace. Artie Burns, who nabbed his first career interception earlier in the game, tried for another and missed. Mike Mitchell took a horrible angle to Wallace who outraced Mitchell all the way to the endzone.
A look at the Dallas Cowboys!
Overall Record: 7-1
Head Coach: Jason Garrett (8th Season with Cowboys)
Overall Regular Season Record: 52-44 (.542)
Playoff Record: 1-1 (Qualified for playoffs 1 time)
Last Week: Dallas 35 Cleveland 10
Breakdown of the Cowboys: Dak Prescott continues to impress in his rookie season, even as Cowboy’s owner Jerry Jones keeps hinting that Tony Romo may get his job back regardless of Prescott leading Dallas to a 7-1 start. Dez Bryant is supposed to be the Cowboys best receiver, but injuries have kept him from having a productive season. Cole Beasley is Dallas’ leader in receptions and is excellent in the slot. Terrance Williams completes the trio of talented pass catchers. Always reliable Jason Witten provides a security blanket for Prescott in short yardage situations and inside the 20.
Rookie Ezekiel Elliot has established himself as one of the best running backs in the game. Elliot is a dual threat but does the most of his damage on the ground. Alfred Morris will relieve him on certain series.
The Cowboys are playing well on defense, only giving up 17.5 points a game, but CB Morris Claiborne is out and that could pose a problem for the Dallas secondary. The Cowboys will also be without safety Barry Church.
Dallas is the only team that hasn’t allowed a 100-yard rusher or 100-yard receiver this year. They now rank among the top 10 in total defense, yielding 332.9 yards per game.
Game Preview: In what should be one of this week’s most entertaining games, expect to see plenty of offense, especially from the Steelers, who inexplicably decided to play conservative against the Ravens last Sunday. This week, look for them to come out guns a blazing, especially with a healthier Big Ben, and an offense that will surely benefit from the addition of Ladarius Green. With the deep ball ability of Sammie Coates, Eli Rogers in the slot, and Green in the middle, Antonio Brown should begin to see a little more space to work with from here on in.
The Steelers must utilize Bell as they always do, a threat to beat you multiple ways.
It would be nice to see defensive coordinator Keith Butler design up some creative ways to get people to the quarterback and keep the talented, but young Prescott on edge. If you give Ezekiel Elliot an inch, he’ll take a foot, so the Steelers cannot afford to take bad angles or tackle sloppy in this one. If the Steelers control the line of scrimmage, they should be able to break this losing streak and set up a big run in the second half of the season.
It would also behoove the Steelers to rid themselves of costly penalties.
“We haven’t been good at that in the last several weeks, and probably more disturbing than the fact that we are being penalized is some of them are procedural things, pre-play things,” Mike Tomlin said. “In play things sometimes happen, a facemask penalty in an effort to make a play. False starts, offside, delay of game, covering up eligible receivers. Those things are very much in our control and we have to eliminate.”
Roethlisberger needs to elevate his game much higher than last week, where he was plain awful for three quarters. The game-plan didn’t help nor did not going to the no-huddle until the game was practically out of reach.
“I put it on myself. I need to be more accurate,” Roethlisberger said. “Give them credit — there were times I was going to make throws and their guys jumped in front of things. … I just need to be better.”
The Steelers can rid themselves of the bitter taste that has been the last four weeks. This team is built to win a Super Bowl. Now it’s time to start playing like it.
Prediction: Steelers 34 Cowboys 27
Fantasy Football Impact
Pittsburgh Steelers
Start: QB Ben Roethlisberger, WR Antonio Brown, RB Le’Veon Bell
Sit: Everyone Else
Sleeper: WR Sammie Coates, WR Eli Rogers
If you’ve been patiently waiting for all of your Steeler starters to make some noise in your league, this should be the week where it pays off.
Dallas Cowboys
Start: RB Ezekiel Elliot
Sit: WR Dez Brant
Sleeper: QB Dak Prescott, WR Cole Beasley
Until I actually see Dez Bryant put together a few decent weeks, it’s hard to trust him. Elliot will get his yards regardless, so start him with confidence. Beasley should get some yards if Dallas gets down early.
Game Information
NFL Week 10
Pittsburgh Steelers (4-4) vs Dallas Cowboys (7-1)
Venue: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA.
Game-time: Sunday, November 13th, 4:25 pm
TV: FOX | Announcers: Joe Buck (play-by-play) Troy Aikman (color analyst) | Erin Andrews (sideline)
Local Radio: Pittsburgh- 102.5 WDVE-FM | Announcers: Bill Hillgrove (play-by-play) Tunch Ilkin (analyst) | Craig Wolfley (sideline)
National Radio: ESPN Radio | Announcers: Adam Amin (play-by-play) TBD (analyst) | Ian Fitzsimmons (sideline)
Weather at Kickoff: 55 and sunny.
Vegas Line: Pittsburgh -2.5
Steelers-Cowboys History
- Series History: Series began in 1960
- The Steelers are 13-15 in the overall Regular Season series against the Cowboys.
- Steelers lead the series playing home 8-6.
- Streak: Ravens won previous meeting.
- Last Regular Season Meeting: Dec. 16, 2012, at Dallas- Dallas 27 Pittsburgh 24 OT
- Steelers are 2-1 in the Post-Season vs the Cowboys.
- Last Post-Season Meeting: Jan. 28, 1996- Dallas 27 Pittsburgh 17 – Super Bowl XXX
Game Notes
- Dallas LB Sean Lee is a native of Pittsburgh, graduating from Upper St. Clair, and competed collegiately at Penn State.
- Cowboys S Barry Church is a graduate of Penn Hills High School in Pittsburgh.
- Ben Roethlisberger with a win, would improve to 3-1 vs. Dallas in the regular season and to 2-0 at home against the Cowboys.
- Roethlisberger needs 56 passing yards to reach 45,000 in his NFL career
- Antonio Brown with 125 receptions in 2016, would become the fi rst player in NFL history to record three consecutive seasons of 125 catches or more.
- Brown will tie Hines Ward (29) for the most 100-yard receiving games in team history with his next 100-yard game.
- Le’Veon Bell‘s next rushing touchdown will mark the 20th of his NFL career.
Individual Statistics
Pittsburgh Steelers
Passing
QB- Ben Roethlisberger (1,949 yards passing | 17 TD passes | 7 interceptions | 13 sacks)
Rushing
RB- Le’Veon Bell (376 yards rushing | 0 rushing TD’s | 36 receptions | 283 yards receiving | 0 receiving TD’s)
RB- DeAngelo Williams (276 yards rushing | 3 rushing TD’s | 15 receptions | 91 yards receiving | 1 receiving TD’s)
Receiving
WR- Antonio Brown (55 receptions | 677 receiving yards | 6 receiving TD’s)
WR- Sammie Coates (20 receptions | 425 receiving yards | 2 receiving TD’s)
WR- Eli Rogers (19 receptions | 238 receiving yards | 1 receiving TD’s)
WR- Darius Heyward-Bey (5 receptions | 68 receiving yards | 1 receiving TD’s)
WR- Markus Wheaton (4 receptions | 51 receiving yards | 1 receiving TD’s)
TE- Jesse James (24 receptions | 172 receiving yards | 3 receiving TD’s)
TE- Xavier Grimble (8 receptions | 83 receiving yards | 1 receiving TD’s)
Kicking
K- Chris Boswell (Extra Point: 21-21 | FG: 7-10 | 0-19: 0-0 | 20-29: 0-0 | 30-39: 1-2 | 40-49: 6-7 | 50+: 0-1 | Long: 49
Steelers Team Statistics, including Defensive Stats
Dallas Cowboys
Passing
QB- Dak Prescott (2,020 yards passing | 12 TD passes | 2 interceptions | 11 sacks)
Rushing
RB- Ezekiel Elliot (891 yards rushing | 7 rushing TD’s | 16 receptions | 155 yards receiving | 0 receiving TD’s)
RB- Alfred Morris (192 yards rushing | 2 rushing TD’s | 1 receptions | 2 yards receiving | 0 receiving TD’s)
Receiving
WR- Cole Beasley (43 receptions | 499 receiving yards | 4 receiving TD’s)
WR- Terrance Williams (24 receptions | 355 receiving yards | 1 receiving TD’s)
WR- Dez Bryant (16 receptions | 282 receiving yards | 2 receiving TD’s)
WR- Brice Butler (11 receptions | 125 receiving yards | 2 receiving TD’s)
TE- Jason Witten (38 receptions | 424 receiving yards | 2 receiving TD’s)
Kicking
K- Dan Bailey (Extra Point: 25-25 | FG: 14-16 | 0-19: 0-0 | 20-29: 6-6 | 30-39: 3-3 | 40-49: 3-5 | 50+: 2-2 | Long: 56
Cowboys Team Statistics, including Defensive Stats
Team Rankings through Week 10
Total Offense: Steelers average 360.4 YPG | Cowboys average 411.5 YPG
Rushing: Steelers average 96 YPG | Cowboys average 165.3 YPG
Passing: Steelers average 264.4 YPG | Cowboys average 246.3 YPG
Scoring: Steelers average 23 PPG | Cowboys average 27.9 PPG
Total Defense: Steelers allow 375.6 YPG | Cowboys allow 332.9 YPG
Rushing: Steelers allow 99.6 YPG | Cowboys allow 86.9 YPG
Passing: Steelers allow 276 YPG | Cowboys allow 246 YPG
Scoring: Steelers allow 21.4 PPG | Cowboys allow 17.5 PPG
Injury Report (11/11/2016)
Pittsburgh Steelers
Out: S Jordan Dangerfield (groin), WR Darrius Heyward-Bey (foot), WR Markus Wheaton (shoulder), RB DeAngelo Williams (knee)
Doubtful: N/A
Questionable: N/A
Dallas Cowboys
Out: Barry Church, S (Forearm), Morris Claiborne, CB (groin)
Doubtful: N/A
Questionable: Dez Bryant, WR (knee), Ryan Davis, DE (hamstring), Chaz Green, T (foot), DeMarcus Lawrence DE (back), Ronald Leary, G (concussion), Tony Romo, QB (back), Tyron Smith, T (hip)
NFL Standings
Pittsburgh Steelers 2016 Schedule
Preseason (1-3)
Friday, Aug. 12 DETROIT L, 30-17
Thursday, Aug. 18 PHILADELPHIA L, 17-0
Friday, Aug. 26 @ New Orleans W, 27-14
Thursday, Sept. 1 @ Carolina L, 18-6
Regular Season (4-4)
Monday, Sept. 12 @ Washington W, 38-16
Sunday, Sept. 18 CINCINNATI W, 24-16
Sunday, Sept. 25 @ Philadelphia L, 34-3
Sunday, Oct. 2 KANSAS CITY W, 43-14
Sunday, Oct. 9 NEW YORK JETS* W, 31-13
Sunday, Oct. 16 @ Miami* 1 p.m. L, 30-15
Sunday, Oct. 23 NEW ENGLAND* L, 16-27
Sunday, Oct. 30 BYE WEEK
Sunday, Nov. 6 @ Baltimore* L, 14-21
Sunday, Nov. 13 DALLAS* 4:25 p.m. (FOX)
Sunday, Nov. 20 @ Cleveland* 1 p.m. (CBS)
Thursday, Nov. 24 @ Indianapolis 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
Sunday, Dec. 4 NEW YORK GIANTS* 4:25 p.m. (FOX)
Sunday, Dec. 11 @ Buffalo* 1 p.m. (CBS)
Sunday, Dec. 18 @ Cincinnati* 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
Sunday, Dec. 25 BALTIMORE 4:30 p.m. (NFL Network)
Sunday, Jan. 1 CLEVELAND* 1 p.m. (CBS)
Postseason
Sat.-Sun., Jan. 7-8 Wild Card Weekend
Sat.-Sun., Jan. 14-15 Divisional Playoff Games
Sunday, Jan. 22 Conference Championships
Sunday, Jan. 29 Pro Bowl (Orlando, Fla.)
Sunday, Feb. 5 Super Bowl LI (Houston, Texas)
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