Steelers Have Adjustments Ready for Play-Calling on Monday Night
PITTSBURGH -- Ben Roethlisberger will take the field as the Steelers starting quarterback on Monday night for the first time in nearly a year.
The 17-year veteran will play his first game since having reconstructive surgery on his throwing elbow following his Week 2 injury in 2019.
Roethlisberger said on Wednesday that the team is excited to be back preparing for Week 1. After an offseason of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, football was on the fence for months prior to training camp.
But teams made it. The NFL season is set to kick off on Thursday, Sept. 10, with the Steelers being the second-last game of the week on Monday, Sept. 14. A game Roethlisberger is thrilled to participate in but anxious to play.
"I was driving in today, crossing the Veterans Bridge, and I was thinking to myself, 'Man, I'm actually nervous for this season,'" Roethlisberger said on Wednesday. "You always have a little bit of the jitters and the nerves for the first game but the way I feel now is more than I've felt in a very long time. I'm sure it's only going to intensify as the week goes on. Monday night, I'm sure I'm going to be shaking like a leaf."
The atmosphere will be different at MetLife Stadium. The Giants announced last month that they won't host fans for the season opener. Therefore, the league will send automated crowd noise that will replace a full stadium.
For the Steelers, it leaves uncertainty about how they'll make adjustments at the line of scrimmage. Usually, Roethlisberger uses hand gestures to signal changes but will need to find an alternative route if noise isn't sufficient.
"We've talked about a lot of different scenarios. Even as much as giving multiple calls at a time," Roethlisberger said. "Not quite going as far as baseball signals; doing the old three type thing, the indicator. I think the crowd noise is going to be just enough where they can't hear you in the huddle. Hopefully, we'll be able to communicate and not give too many things away. It's going to be tricky."
The Steelers will have some unknowns to their gameplan this season. Adding Matt Canada as the team's quarterback coach in the spring, Roethlisberger said they'll likely add some of the college schematics Canada used in years prior.
Formations like the wildcat are calling cards for Canada's offense, which the Steelers' quarterback hinted at using in Week 1.
"It's definitely different for a player like myself who's been in the NFL for so long, because it does have a lot of college feel to it," Roethlisberger said. "I know some teams have started to do it in the NFL over the last couple years. It's different for me so it's taking some getting used to. I've asked the linemen and our defense what it does for them and it throws the defense into a little bit of a tizzy when you see the motion and you're not sure who's getting the ball ... This offense will have his fingerprints all over it and you'll see some stuff on Monday night I'm sure. Hopefully, we can be successful with it."
The Giants will also have plenty of speculation when it comes to game-planning against them. Head coach Mike Tomlin said on Tuesday that he's nervous about the Giants coaching staff's unknowns.
New York will have a first-year head coach, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator working on Monday night. Therefore, finding film to study has been a challenge for the Steelers.
"We've watched a lot of different film. I don't know the last time we watched so many different teams," Roethlisberger said. "From Patriots to Dolphins to Giants, some Packers stuff, we've watched a lot of different things.
"We don't have any preseason games. We don't really know so we have to be able to have a plan and then work that plan and plan for the unexpected. It's going to have to be a lot of sidelines adjustments going on. And I like the fact that we're a veteran-enough team to make those adjustments."
When the two teams hit the field, the jitters will be strong, the gameplan will be adjusted and their 2020 season will be underway. Roethlisberger has plenty to think about when he leads the Steelers onto MetLife Stadium for his first time since last September. But he understands his teammates have his back as much he should have theirs.
"I'm more worried about myself than I am the other guys," Roethlisberger said. "I have to manage myself as the quarterback, the guy that's handling the ball every play. Making sure we're in the right play. Not trying to do too much. It's going to be on my to get myself under control and then help young guys as we go. Just because we have a very good veteran group, I think we can all help each other in that area. My comfort is going to come from the guys in front of me. We're all going to have to help each other out. Guys are going to have to make plays for me, I'm going to have to make plays for guys. That's why this is the ultimate team sport."
Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
