The Pittsburgh Steelers turned their fortunes around in impressive fashion on Sunday night, authoring a dominant performance in a 37-19 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Charlotte. Our takeaways:
- The Steelers looked lost against the Baltimore Ravens last Thursday. Here, they dominated the Panthers on both sides of the ball. The offense was especially impressive against what's widely regarded as one of the best defenses in the NFL. That the Steelers did it on the road was even better.
- Cam Newton still doesn't look quite right, and he took way too many hits on Sunday. The Steelers pounded on the Panthers' quarterback, who was limping noticeably before being replaced by Derek Anderson in the final minutes. The Panthers need to find some balance on offense and not put their franchise star in so many obvious passing situations.
- Antonio Brown is a grown man. The eternally underrated wide receiver had 10 catches for 90 yards and two scores. He's a perfect fit with Ben Roethlisberger: The quarterback is a master at buying time, and Brown is a master of improvising his way into open spaces.
- Le'Veon Bell's breakout season is taking flight. The second-year running back set up a touchdown with an 81-yard run -- the longest run in the NFL this season -- and finished with 146 yards on 20 carries. LeGarrette Blount added a 50-yard rumble later and went over 100 yards in garbage time. Not a bad combo.
- Philly Brown delivered one of the most destructive special teams gaffes you'll ever see. Brown muffed a punt, picked it up, got stripped, then watched -- in horror, we presume -- as the ball kicked into the end zone before being recovered by the Steelers for a back-breaking touchdown. Ted Ginn is missed.
- Reminder: Panthers tight end Greg Olsen can flat out play. On Sunday, he beat Steelers cornerback Cortez Allen on a fourth-down, then bolted down the sideline for a 37-yard touchdown. Kelvin Benjamin is a star on the rise, but Olsen remains Cam Newton's best weapon.
- Have we seen the last of Ike Taylor? Mike Tomlin announced veteran Steelers cornerback suffered a broken forearm.
- Rookie linebacker Ryan Shazier left the game with a right knee injury and didn't return. If the speedy first-round pick is out for an extended period of time, it's a big blow to the Pittsburgh defense.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast recaps all of the Week 3 action and picks the top team in the AFC.
