A week ago, when Ben Roethlisberger addressed the assessment of the Steelers' quarterbacks coach, Randy Fichtner, that he's become "a point guard" at this point in his career, Roethlisberger mentioned the no-huddle offense without being questioned about it.
"We may have not been doing much no-huddle but ... I still feel like there’s still a lot on my plate to make sure I still run this offense," Roethlisberger said at the time.
The Steelers haven't run much no-huddle this season, certainly not as much as in previous years. But one big reason has been that the team played six of its first nine games on the road. Another is that there are so many new players in the offense. Tight end Vance McDonald joined the team a week before the season. JuJu Smith-Schuster is a rookie. Martavis Bryant missed all of 2016.
When the Steelers have used the no-huddle, mostly at the end of a half or when trailing, they've had success. Six times this season they have gotten the ball late in a half and put points on the board using the no-huddle.
Moving forward, with five of the final seven games at Heinz Field, starting Thursday night against the Titans, the Steelers could lean on the no-huddle more often.
That would suit Roethlisberger, who brought the Steelers back from a 14-point deficit Sunday in a 20-17 win in Indianapolis for his 41st game-winning drive, just fine.
“It’s actually easier because that’s something that’s been in since day one,” Roethlisberger said. “So, rather than install a bunch of new plays, you go with what you know and have been doing for a long time.”
Roethlisberger has long been a proponent of the no-huddle. It allows him to scan the defense quickly and try – with help from Todd Haley through the speaker in his helmet – to get the Steelers into a play and set the game's tempo.
"The name of the game," Haley said, "is to put ourselves in a position to succeed when everything is on the line and we’d like to be able to do that at home."
The Titans present a defense that could set up well for the Steelers' no-huddle. One of the biggest issues over the years when Tennessee defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau held the same position with the Steelers was when opponents spread his defense out and threw the ball against it. And the Titans currently rank 19th in the NFL in passing defense at 236 yards per game, with 17 touchdown passes allowed and just 14 sacks.
Roethlisberger has thrown just 12 touchdown passes against 10 interceptions this season and is averaging 255 yards passing per game, down from 273 last season. He averaged 328 yards in 2015 when the Steelers used the no-huddle several times per game.
"Whatever we need to do to win games," Le'Veon Bell said. "Whether that's me running the ball 30 times or us throwing it a bunch of times. That's what we'll do."
THE ESSENTIALS
• When: 8:25 p.m.
• Where: Heinz Field
• TV: WPXI, NFL Network (national)
• Radio: 102.5 WDVE, ESPN Pittsburgh
• Satellite: SiriusXM Channel 83 (Internet 826)
• Forecast: Cloudy, 39, wind 10 WNW
• Lots open: 3:25 p.m.
• Will call open: 5:25 p.m.
• Gates open: 6:25 p.m.
• Boxscore: NFL Game Center
• Media notes: Steelers | Titans
• Odds: MyBookie.AG
THE INJURY REPORT
Steelers: CB Joe Haden (fibula, out), TE Vance McDonald (ankle, questionable), S Mike Mitchell (ankle, questionable), LB James Harrison (back, questionable)
Titans: None listed
Stephon Tuitt - MATT SUNDAY / DKPSTHE TOP THREAT
The Titans feature one of the NFL's top running back tandems in DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry, bruising runners who have combined for 842 rushing yards, or two more than Bell's league-leading 840. Murray is 6-1, 220 pounds, while Henry is 6-3, 247, but they also have the ability to make big plays. Murray, who led the NFL in rushing in 2014 with the Cowboys, has a 75-yard touchdown run this season. Henry has one of 72.
The Titans like to call their offensive attack "Exotic Smashmouth," and Murray and Henry are definitely the latter part of that name.
"They've got two big backs," Sean Davis told me. "We've got to hit them hard."
The Titans are eighth in the league in rushing yards, averaging just under 125. The Steelers have had issues stopping the run at times, with both of their losses coming to teams with top-10 rushing attacks. The Steelers allowed 220 yards on the ground to Chicago in a 23-17 overtime loss in Week 3, then 231 yards to the Jaguars' top-rated running game in a 30-9 defeat in Week 5.
"We've got to stop the run," Stephon Tuitt said. "The Titans will use a lot of motion and misdirection, kind of like Kansas City. We can't fall for those things. Guys have to stay disciplined and do their job and we'll be fine. You have to get (Murray and Henry) before they get rolling."
THE KEY VARIABLE
The Titans' coaching staff looks like a who's-who list of former Steelers players and coaches.
Much has been made of LeBeau's return to Pittsburgh, but Tennessee head coach Mike Mularkey was a tight end for the Steelers and was an assistant coach with the team from 1996-2003, spending his final three seasons as offensive coordinator. Defensive line coaches Nick Eason and Keith Willis also played for the Steelers, as did secondary coach Deshea Townsend. On Mularkey's staff, offensive line coach Russ Grimm and linebackers coach Lou Spanos also coached for the Steelers.
"They've got a few guys over there that we've coached with, more than one," Keith Butler said. "So it will be competitive."
They won't be the only ones with something extra on the line. The Steelers' offensive line coach, Mike Munchak, spent his entire Hall of Fame playing career with the Tennessee franchise, as well as nearly two decades as an assistant coach with the team, then the final three as head coach.
THE MAIN MATCHUP
Bell enters Week 11 leading the NFL in rushing with 840 yards, 40 more than the Chiefs' Kareem Hunt. And given his workload through nine games – he's averaging a league-high 24.4 carries – he has a chance to become the Steelers' first running back to lead the league in rushing since ...
"Willie Parker?" Bell replied when I asked him.
Nope.
"Jerome Bettis?" he asked again.
Nope.
"Franco?" he again quizzed.
Not Franco Harris. Wrong again.
The correct answer would be "Bullet" Bill Dudley, who had 604 yards in 1946. Dudley also led the league with 696 yards in 1942. He and Byron "Whizzer" White (1938) are the only two Steelers to lead the NFL in rushing.
This might not be the night for Bell to run up his total. LeBeau has long believed in stopping the run first and forcing a team to pass. Tennessee has the NFL's sixth-best run defense, allowing just under 92 yards rushing per game.
"They've got Dick LeBeau, so their defense is very similar to ours," Bell said. "We'll go out there and do what we do. We'll try to run the ball and pass the ball and stay balanced."
The Titans expect to see plenty of Bell but also know they can't solely focus on stopping the NFL's leading rusher with the league's top receiver, Antonio Brown, in the same offense.
"They're a challenge to defend based on what they do and how they do it with," Mularkey said. "I think Todd Haley does a good job of being balanced and not forcing the ball to any one guy."
But Bell touches the ball 57 percent of the time in the Steelers' offense through both rushing attempts and receptions. He's the only active back in the league who accounts for more than 50 percent of his team's offensive touches. If that continues, he'll have a good shot at joining Dudley and White.
"There's always that opportunity," said Bell. "As long as we keep winning games, we'll see what happens. It would be a big deal. It's always humbling when you see yourself at the top of the rushing chart. I'm going to continue to go out there and do what I do, continue to run hard. As long as that keeps adding up to wins, great."
SALUTE TO SERVICE
Thursday's game will mark the Steelers' annual Salute to Service.
The Steelers have, of course, employed a number of veterans over the years, from current left tackle Alejandro Villanueva to former stars such as running back Rocky Bleier and linebacker Andy Russell. Russell was inducted into the Army following his rookie season in 1963, returning in 1966 after spending two years stationed in Germany.
"It was the right thing to do," Russell told me of his service. "I played football at the division level and I was the coach of the defense, as well. We had 25,000 men at the division level. It wasn't college football, but it was a good level. And I learned a lot about coaching that I was able to transfer when I returned to playing. It was a good experience."
As part of the celebration, the team's co-captain will be Gen. Michael Hayden. In addition, the team will have a POW Seat Dedication and will recognize each branch of the military by honoring a local veteran or active military member from each branch. The honorees will be introduced in a pre-game ceremony and will stand with the Steelers during the playing of the National Anthem.
The anthem will be performed by the United States Herald of Trumpets of the Army Band.
Also, the 50/50 raffle will go to military charities and there will be a Salute to Service halftime challenge involving members of the Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard competing for a donation to the charity of their choice.
Of the Steelers' current players and coaches, 45 have served or have an immediate family member who served in the military.
The game also will feature both teams wearing their "Color Rush" uniforms as part of the league's Thursday night schedule. Fans watching at home also will see the game from a different view. The broadcast will rely largely on “SkyCam,” two remote-controlled, wire-suspended cameras set up behind the line of scrimmage.
THE QUOTES
"I wasn’t yelling at Ben. My daughter sent me the clip and said, 'Dad, why were you yelling at him?' I wasn’t yelling at Ben. I was yelling at an unnamed coach that I will not talk about right now." – Haley on the video clip circulating that appears to show him yelling "Shut the f--- up, Ben!" during the game Sunday in Indianapolis
"I know that the players voted on the CBA -- even though we were the only team that unanimously voted against that -- but we have to do it. It’s not like we can’t do it. It is tough to turn around physically because it is such a demanding sport and a demanding game. We are a pretty beat-up football team, and to turn around in two days and play another physical football team is going to be tough. They are going through it, too, so it’s not like we’re playing Thursday and they’re not." – Roethlisberger on playing Thursday night games
“My time with the Steelers, what the organization did for my life, I had so many good things happen for me there. I’ll always be grateful to Pittsburgh and the Rooney family. But we’re in Nashville now. But Pittsburgh people, they were wonderful to me. They were absolutely wonderful to me.” – LeBeau
THE 10 DATA POINTS
• Last Sunday's win for the Steelers was the 130th in the regular season with Roethlisberger at quarterback. They are 130-62 in the regular season with Roethlisberger, including 71-23 at home.
• Brown needs 118 yards to surpass 1,000 yards receiving for the fifth consecutive year, extending his own Steelers record.
• The Steelers are 31-16 under Tomlin in prime time games, but just 6-6 on Thursday night.
• Roethlisberger needs 214 passing yards to pass Warren Moon (49,325) for eighth place on the NFL's all-time yardage list.
• The Steelers have allowed just two touchdown passes in three home games this season.
• Bell is 115 rushing yards short of becoming the fourth player to record 5,000 with the Steelers.
• The Steelers are 7-11 scoring touchdowns in the red zone when Marcus Gilbert is at right tackle. They are 7-23 when he does not.
• Tennessee quarterback Marcus Mariota has never turned the ball over inside the red zone in his three-year career.
• The Steelers have not allowed a touchdown on an opponent's opening possession in 26 consecutive games. That's the longest current streak in the NFL.
• Titans safety Kevin Byard leads the NFL with six interceptions.
THE MULTIMEDIA
Our Morning Java on the keys to victory:
The video Carter's Classroom breaking down the Titans:
And our DK Sports Radio preview show:
THE SNEAKY FANTASY PLAY
Mariota had looked to build on a second NFL season that saw him throw 26 touchdown passes and rush for two more in 2016. But he's been stifled this year, throwing just seven TDs with six interceptions, one fewer than all of last season. The Steelers have the league's second-rated pass defense but will be without Haden. Mariota might not be a popular play this week on the road against the Steelers, but he could put up decent numbers. The Steelers have given up five TD passes in their past four games after allowing three in their first five. And opposing QBs have had some success scrambling, especially when rookie linebacker T.J. Watt loses contain.
THE STAFF PICKS
Our football coverage team offers predictions:
Dale Lolley: Look for the Steelers to try to use their no-huddle in this game to try to get a lead to take the Titans out of their run-first offense. The Titans have just 14 sacks this season to rank 28th in the league. They don't generate a lot of pressure, though DT Jurrell Casey can be an offense wrecker. The Titans come into this game having beaten the Browns, Bengals and Ravens in their past three games. A win would give them the clean sweep of the AFC North. I don't see that happening, though Thursday night games can have some strange outcomes. Steelers, 24-17
Dejan Kovacevic: I haven't been buying what the Titans are selling. Their current four-game winning steak consists of squeakers against the Colts and the other three AFC North teams. Seriously, they beat the Browns and Ravens by three each, then the Bengals by four. At the same time, until the Steelers' defense shows it can shut down one of these run-first offenses -- Murray and Henry might as well represent Leonard Fournette and Jordan Howard here -- the skepticism is warranted. Especially with two secondary guys out. Not feeling this one. Titans, 26-20
Chris Carter: The Titans are a team that have yet to establish their identity as to why they're among the leaders in the AFC. Mariota is a young quarterback still figuring out how to use his mobility with his arm and the running game is a thunder/thunder combination with Henry and Murray both being downhill runners. Roethlisberger will have to keep an eye out for the NFL's leading interceptor, Byard, and how he flows in the Titans' zone schemes to make big plays. But with a pass rush that's ranked 28th in the NFL with only 14 on the season, look for Roethlisberger to get comfortable in the pocket and start clicking more with his receivers working through their routes. Steelers, 31-13.
Matt Sunday: Carter is being a bit bold with his Steelers score this week! 31 points! The Steelers can score 31 points, but they might give up that much at home on Thursday. These Thursday night games have a tendency for entire offenses or defenses to disappear. It’s awfully hard to prepare and be ready on all three sides of the ball in three days. The side I see having the most issues Thursday is the Steelers’ defense. This unit has really struggled against run-first teams, and I can’t imagine that improves with fewer days to prepare for a heck of a trio, including Mariota, on the ground. We’ve also seen the Steelers lose a couple of tight ends in the end zone this season, and the team in all blue has a decent one of those as well. One team proves the AFC isn’t decided and the NFL schedule is a problem. Titans, 31-20.