Connecting with RBs would benefit Roethlisberger

In the span of four possessions, Ben Roethlisberger(notes) combined a lesson of how to make his career survive long term with a painful reminder of why some people worry that he won't last.

With 8:35 remaining in regulation on Sunday at Kansas City, Roethlisberger hit running back Rashard Mendenhall(notes) with an 8-yard touchdown pass to take a seven-point lead. It was a beautiful, tight throw into the teeth of the Chiefs defense. It was Mendenhall's first career scoring reception and one of a career-high four passes he caught on the day.

Those facts are significant because the overall success of Roethlisberger, and the Pittsburgh offense, is greatly impacted by plays like that one.

While Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning(notes) has thrown eight touchdown passes to current running backs Joseph Addai(notes) and former Colt Dominic Rhodes(notes) during the past two seasons, Roethlisberger only has four to his three tailbacks (Mendenhall, Mewelde Moore(notes) and Willie Parker) in the same period. Ultimately, Roethlisberger would be wise to make more use of his running backs, who have combined to catch only 81 passes since the beginning of 2008 (the Colts trio has 115).

That's because what happened about 11 minutes later in the Chiefs-Steelers game is an indictor of how things can go bad for Pittsburgh and Roethlisberger. It's a big reason why Roethlisberger may never win a Most Valuable Player award he was in line for until two games ago. Most important, it's a big reason why he might not have a long career.

Less than three minutes into overtime, Roethlisberger was sacked and knocked out of the game with a mild concussion. He didn't return, the Steelers failed to score and Kansas City went on to win 27-24.

As Roethlisberger is wont to do, his sack came after he scrambled trying to extend the play and find a receiver downfield. This is the prototypical Roethlisberger play, which is a big reason why he is one of the best downfield throwers in the game.

However, the lesson Roethlisberger needs to learn is that throwing short isn't always a bad idea. Moreover, sometimes there are just as many yards to get throwing underneath to a running back as there are throwing downfield to a wide receiver.

Really, truly.

For instance, when Roethlisberger had a season-worst 51.5 quarterback rating during a Week 10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, he missed at least four throws underneath to running backs. He was clearly forcing throws down the field, ultimately costing the Steelers a chance to move the ball more effectively.

"The Steelers are really unique in what they do because they are so vertical with their attack," former St. Louis Rams head coach Mike Martz said this week. "[Roethlisberger] works so hard to create time, even if it means taking a hit, to get something going downfield."

Again, that's noble in some ways and, in another way, unwise to the point of counterproductive.

Mostly, Roethlisberger's insistence on throwing deep has made him easy to read. Not easy to stop, mind you, but easier to game plan against.

"You can't dispute the guy's toughness," a top team executive said of Roethlisberger this week. "I never thought he'd be a great passer, but he really is. He's different, now. He wants to challenge you all the time. He's looking for a big play. Not every time, but a lot. In the Cincinnati game, he wasn't smart about it and forced too much action."

As one NFL coach put it: "Punt the ball, go play defense, get the ball back, score the next time you get it. Not every play has to be a touchdown."

Or, to put it in another perspective, some touchdowns can be thrown to people other than wide receivers. Roethlisberger can open the field with throws to running backs, forcing the defense to have to play inside out.

That was a favorite tactic of one of Roethlisberger's heroes growing up, Dan Marino. Marino loved the idea of throwing to tight ends in the middle of the field. He loved throwing to running backs breaking downfield. He understood that those throws kept the defense honest.

And, ultimately, off of him.

Bad decision of the week I: Baltimore coach John Harbaugh is a wonderful guy and usually makes the right call, even on the run. However, he and the Ravens completely botched the final two minutes of the game against Indianapolis on Sunday. Facing a third-and-1 with 2:26 remaining, Indianapolis threw a short pass to wide receiver Reggie Wayne(notes). Baltimore called for a timeout (its second) right away after the play to stop the clock with 2:19 rather than wait to see if the officials would call for a measurement. After Indy picked up a first down with the measurement, Harbaugh challenged and lost, costing him the third timeout and a chance to save around 40 seconds of time. If that wasn't brutal enough, the Ravens still were able to force a punt with 28 seconds remaining, but return man Ed Reed(notes) made a crucial mistake when he fumbled as he tried to pitch the ball to a teammate.

Bad decision of the week II: In the second half, after getting to the Miami 24-yard line, Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme(notes) had a chance to snap the ball quickly and catch the Dolphins with too many players on the field, which would have led to a free play and at least an automatic first down. Delhomme was initially delayed by a referee standing over the ball, but then he waited to call the play and ended up throwing an interception.

Williams had 138 offensive yards and 3 TDs against the Panthers.

(Rick Havner/AP Photo)

Bad announcing of the week: During the NFL Network's Thursday-night broadcast, first Marshall Faulk(notes) and then Matt Millen kept talking about how Dolphins running back Ricky Williams(notes) had to be "the Ricky Williams from New Orleans" if Miami is to survive the loss of Pro Bowl running back Ronnie Brown(notes). However, Williams' two best seasons were actually with Miami in 2002 and 2003. That included his first Pro Bowl appearance in 2002 after he rushed for 1,853 yards.

Top five
1. New Orleans Saints (10-0): Bring earplugs for the Monday nighter vs. the Pats.
2. Minnesota Vikings (9-1): Brett Favre's(notes) 21 TD passes to 3 INTs is unreal for him.
3. Indianapolis Colts (10-0): That's three straight weeks where the other team gave them a win.
4. New England Patriots (7-3): This is more by default than by results.
5. San Diego Chargers (7-3): Maybe starting their late-season run early will help.

Bottom five
28. Oakland Raiders (3-7): Nice game by Bruce Gradkowski(notes), but he's not the answer.
29. Detroit Lions (2-8): They have a QB. But can they keep him healthy?
30. St. Louis Rams (1-9): Running neck and neck with the Raiders for fewest points scored..
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-9): Two coordinators dismissed in one season? Hmmm, not good.
32. Cleveland Browns (1-9): Eric Mangini is accusing somebody of faking an injury? Oh, the irony.

This and that

• Kudos to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for upgrading the league's concussion policy to include an independent neurologist for each team to help determine the risks for players when they get hurt. That said, let's not kid ourselves into thinking that football is ever going to be 100 percent safe in its current form. The most important thing the NFL can do – and it's trying – is to give players a real sense of the toll the sport takes. From there, it's up to everybody to make a decision.

• On second thought, maybe Michael Crabtree(notes) had a legitimate point when his agent (Eugene Parker) argued that Crabtree, who was the No. 10 overall pick in this year's NFL draft, deserved a contract worth as much or more than No. 7 overall pick Darrius Heyward-Bey(notes). Crabtree has played in five games for the San Francisco 49ers after his lengthy holdout, caught 22 passes for 292 yards and nabbed his first touchdown Sunday. Meanwhile, Heyward-Bey continues to struggle with the Oakland Raiders. Despite not holding out and playing in all 10 games, Heyward-Bey has only seven catches for 103 yards and no touchdowns. He also looked completely lost on a deep throw in the fourth quarter against Cincinnati on Sunday, as if he had no idea where the ball was coming from. It's hard to say somebody is a flop after less than a full season, but Heyward-Bey is already on the bus to bust.

• Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco(notes) had one of the best quotes of the year when he talked about catching passes last week. "It's natural, man," Ochocinco said during a conference. "You have some people who are just natural pass-catchers and everything is smooth. Then you see some receivers, and they sort of fight with the ball, it's a struggle. Or you have some who always catch with their chest. I'm just natural. I love the ball. If you ever watch me play, I make love to the ball when it comes in."

• One of the interesting elements of New England linebacker Junior Seau's(notes) TV series, Sports Jobs With Junior Seau, is that it's the first job Seau has had outside of football. "Never had a job growing up," Seau says. "I was a momma's boy and just played sports all the time. She drove me to all my practices and did everything for me." The series, which debuts Dec. 2 on Versus, features Seau doing a series of jobs related to the sports industry – from construction worker at the new stadium for the Giants and Jets to being a rodeo clown to being a batboy for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Seau had great appreciation for all of it, he said. In particular, he gave auto racing much greater respect than before ("those guys are definitely athletes").