SPONSORED: Who Should the Steelers Draft?

Pittsburgh’s Wild Card Playoff Round loss to the Baltimore Ravens left a bad taste in the mouths of Steelers fans everywhere. However, although it doesn’t feel like it right now, the 2015 season is going to be here closer than you think. And when it comes, ScoreBig.com will be the place to save on every Steelers ticket, for every game. Until then, the one thing every fan can look forward to is the upcoming NFL Draft.


Almost everybody agrees that the Steelers need to use their first pick to shore up a leaky secondary. Their offense is one of the most elite in the league, but having Roethlisberger, Brown, and Bell can only do you so much if you’re letting the other team pick you apart in the passing game. Pittsburgh finished a ghastly 27th in passing yard defense last season.


Here are three players Pittsburgh should consider taking with their first pick:


1. Gerrod Holliman, Free Safety, Louisville


This Cardinals FS babied opposing quarterbacks in 2014, tying a 46-year-old FBS record by picking off 14 passes. That’s an average of more than 1 interception a game. However, while Holliman’s ball-hawking skills are unparalleled, he struggles making open field tackles and reading opposing offenses against the run. He’s super talented, but would be a project on the next level, at least as a rookie.



2. Kevin Johnson, Cornerback, Wake Forest


This Demon Deacon doesn’t create turnovers at as an astonishing clip as Holliman can, but he’s got good length and is serviceable in coverage. He’s also much stronger when it comes to preventing the run and banging bodies. At the risk of being too simplistic, consider Johnson the inverse of Holliman. He probably doesn’t have as high a ceiling as the Louisville safety over a whole career, but he can come in on day one more NFL-ready.


3. PJ Williams, Florida State


Williams is a freak athlete who can play both corner and safety. He’s 6’1 so he can match up against bigger, physical receivers, but at a lithe 190 pounds he can also move and keep with quicker slot guys. The old ‘character concerns’ red flag surrounds Williams, however; he was involved in a hit and run while at FSU (though the Tallahassee police department, ever-lenient with Seminoles players, downgraded it to a mere traffic ticket). Is he mature enough to stay focused on what it takes to succeed in the pros?



ScoreBig.com is the place to get all your Pittsburgh Steelers tickets in 2015. And while you wait through the long winter and spring for the new season to arrive, check out whatever NHL, NBA, or MLB tickets spur your interest as well! ScoreBig.com is the only place where you’ll save on every ticket, every sport, every day.

SPONSORED: Who Was The Steelers MVP?

You don’t come in first place in your division and win 11 games in the competitive AFC without a team effort. As such, it would be unfair for anybody to list just one Steelers player as the team’s season MVP. However, here are three players who truly played above and beyond in 2014.


3. I could say that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had a fantastic season under center in 2014, but that would be rather akin to saying water is wet, isn’t it? Big Ben has been so good for so long (he does have three Super Bowl appearances and two rings, after all) that it’s easy to take his excellence for granted. This year though was something else, even by his solid standards. Career highs in completion percentage, touchdowns, passing yards, and a career low in interceptions (over a 16 game season). Wow.


2. Running back LeVeon Bell took a major leap forward in his sophomore season, upping per carry average by 1.2 yards and rushing for 1300+ yards overall. He had a touchdown-to-fumble ratio of 8-0. That’s right, zero fumbles in sixteen games, an incredibly valuable trait for any running back. He was such a revelation that the Pro Football Writers of America voted him the Most Improved Player of the Year. Unfortunately, through no fault of Bell’s own, his fantastic season was marred by a Week 17 injury that forced him to sit out the Steelers’ playoff loss to Baltimore. Had he been at full strength for that game is a major “What If” that Steelers fans with have to grapple with all off-season.


1. Great as Roethlisberger and Bell were, the closest thing to an MVP that Pittsburgh had all year was wide receiver Antonio Brown. In a league that is passing the ball with great frequency than ever, Brown was the best at his position all year. A league leading 1698 yards receiving. 13 TDs. He’s the best weapon Big Ben has had since he was chucking it to Hines Ward and Plaxico Burress almost a decade ago, and when all’s said and done he’ll probably have a better career than both. In fact, he was so good this year that he wasn’t just named to the Pro Bowl – he was named the AFC’s captain. In a year in which a lot of Steelers were very good, Brown wasn’t very good. He was borderline transcendent.


ScoreBig.com is the place to get all your Pittsburgh Steelers tickets in 2015. And while you wait through the long winter and spring for the new season to arrive, check out whatever NHL, NBA, or MLB tickets spur your interest as well! ScoreBig.com is the only place where you’ll save on every ticket, every sport, every day.

SPONSORED: Lessons To Take Away From Steelers Season

Whether you saw the Pittsburgh Steelers live from Heinz Field thanks to ScoreBig.com, or if you just watched them play from the comfort of your couch, there was a lot to appreciate about their 2014 season. An 11-5 record, a top spot in the ultra-competitive AFC North, and career years from multiple offensive players. Still, that 30-17 opening round playoff loss to archrival Baltimore stings. Taking the good with the bittersweet, here are some Lessons to take away from the season.


1. Antonio Brown has given Roethlisberger’s career new life


Roethlisberger has never had a bad season, and with two Super Bowl rings he’s a pretty clear-cut Hall of Famer already. But, for a few seasons, it seemed like Big Ben had slipped out of the top tier of NFL QBs. He was still very good, just not as elite as he once was. That changed in a great way in 2014. Thanks to a breakout season from wide receiver Antonio Brown, Roethlisberger had the best season of his career at 32. In his first ten seasons he had only broken the 4000-yard mark thrice and the 30-TD mark once. He finished 2014 with nearly 5000 yards and 32 scores.


2. LeVeon Bell is a keeper


Bell had an okay season in his rookie year, but one that didn’t quite live up to the hope considering the Steelers’ then-weakness at the position and Bell’s high draft status. He had a breakout year in 2014, topping the 1000 yard mark and winning Most Improved Player of the Year in 2014.

3. Every game matters. Every game.


The Steelers went 11-5 and won the AFC North, so at first glance it’s hard to be disappointed in that record. But you maybe should be. Two of Pittsburgh’s losses came to the 4-12 Jets and 2-14 Buccaneers. If they take care of business in those eminently winnable contests, they’re 13-3 and have a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. If they have that bye LeVeon Bell probably plays for them in the Divisional Round. The AFC is too competitive to expect to win 3 games (two on the road) in order to make the Super Bowl, as their 30-17 loss to Baltimore proved.


The first round elimination hurts, but every new year brings a new season. And when the months pass by and football’s back at Heinz Field ScoreBig.com is the place where you’ll save on every Steelers ticket, everyday. And in the meantime, check out their amazing selection of cheap NBA, NHL, or MLB tickets, too!