GLENDALE, Ariz. -- And a Duck shall lead them.
Or something like that.
Digging out of 0-3 and 1-4 holes would have been one thing for the Steelers if they still had Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback. Doing so with Mason Rudolph and, now, Devlin 'Duck' Hodges, well, that's the sort of thing Steelers fans will be talking about for a long time -- if the Steelers keep winning.
They've done so 7 of the past 9 times they've taken the field since that slow start, thrusting themselves into the forefront of the chase for the sixth, and final, playoff spot in the AFC.
They moved back into that spot with four games remaining with a 20-13 win last week against the Browns, a game in which Hodges solidified his spot in Steelers lore by becoming the first undrafted rookie to win his first two starts in games not involving replacement players.
The Steelers (7-5) and Hodges can't afford to rest on their laurels, however. The Titans (7-5) and a handful of other teams remain nipping at their heels. They need a win Sunday in Arizona against the Cardinals (3-8-1) to keep pace.
Without Roethlisberger, the Steelers have had to rely on their other team leaders -- and Mike Tomlin -- to keep things together. And they've largely answered the bell week after week.
"Man, it’s not just me. We’ve got a lot of guys holding up their end of the deal," said defensive captain Cam Heyward. "I love that at the beginning of the year, everybody was counting us out. Everybody was ready (for us) to throw in the towel. Not a lot of teams come back from 0-3. We have to keep answering the call and making people regret that."
One thing Tomlin didn't regret was his decision to go with Hodges last week against the Browns in place of an ineffective Rudolph. The Steelers had gone 5-3 in games started by the second-year quarterback, but his play had deteriorated in recent weeks.
Hodges, who had earlier stepped in and started for an injured Rudolph against the Chargers in Los Angeles, threw for 211 yards and a touchdown last week against the Browns.
The Steelers are piecing things together on a week-to-week basis, even at the quarterback position. They'll play again this week without two ProBowl players — receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner — meaning Hodges will continue to have an inexperienced backfield and receiving corps at his disposal.
Last week, that meant the Steelers had five different players touch the ball on offense -- including Hodges -- who weren't on their original 53-man roster to start the season.
"It’s a tip of the hat to them," offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said. "They’ve come in and they’ve learned, they’ve listened, they’ve worked. They put themselves in position to play because we needed them, and the rest of the group accepted them, and it’s been great."
One player the Steelers will get back is center Maurkice Pouncey. He completed his two-game suspension for his part in the team's Nov. 14 brawl against the Browns and is slated to return to the starting lineup.
"Pouncey, the ultimate teammate. It is great to have him back, (there's) a lot of excitement," said Hodges.
There's also been a lot of excitement within the fan base regarding Hodges. Released at the end of training camp after earning a spot with the team via a tryout at rookie minicamp, he continues to surprise.
His teammates are enjoying the rookie's newfound fame as much as Hodges himself. And it will only continue to grow as he continues to win.
"If you would have asked me five or six years ago or the first couple games I’d say, 'Man, this is wild, a quarterback named Duck.'" Hodges said. "But now, it’s cool. It is something that has caught on and something that I have kind of embraced. It is awesome when fans come up and they are like, “Hey Duck, what’s up? Duck what are you up to?” Then if someone calls me Devlin it kind of catches me by surprise. I’m like, 'Do you know me?' It is cool. It’s unique and it kind of fits who I am."
It kind of fits this team, as well. As Heyward said, they were largely written off after starting the season so slowly and losing Roethlisberger.
Now, it's all fun -- as long as the wins keep coming.
A suffocating defense that has risen from the bottom of the league rankings a couple of weeks in to its current ranking of fifth and No. 1 in terms of forced turnovers with 30, hasn't hurt, either.
"We are pretty loose. Everybody’s just, get a win, get back on it," Heyward said. "We’re enjoying playing the type of ball we’re playing on defense. When a defense is having fun, that’s a way to win."
THE ESSENTIALS
• Who: Steelers (7-5) vs. Cardinals (3-8-1)
• When: 4:25 p.m.
• Where: State Farm Stadium
• Radio: 102.5 WDVE, ESPN Pittsburgh
• Satellite: SiriusXM 227, Internet 826
• Forecast: Indoors
• Lots open: 12:15 p.m.
• Will call open: 12:15 p.m.
• Gates open: 12:45 p.m.
• Boxscore: NFL Game Center
• Odds: MyBookie.AG
THE INJURY REPORT
Steelers: WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee, out), RB James Conner (shoulder, out)
Cardinals: CB Byron Murphy (calf, questionable), CB Kevin Peterson (shoulder, questionable), OL Max Garcia (toe, questionable), C A.Q. Shipley (illness, questionable), S Jalen Thompson (concussion, questionable)
THE KEY VARIABLE
The Steelers defense ranks third in the NFL with 43 sacks. It leads the NFL with 30 takeaways.
But those things haven't always travelled well.
Just eight of the team's sacks and 10 of its turnovers have come in the team's five previous road games. Take away a five-turnover game in a loss in San Francisco, and a four-sack game against the Bengals, and the Steelers have produced just five turnovers and four sacks in their other four road games.
Not surprisingly for a team that has become so reliant on its defense, the Steelers are just 2-3 on the road this season because of those issues away from Heinz Field. Considering three of the team's final four regular season games are on the road (and any potential playoff games are going to be there, as well) figuring out those issues is critical.
They'll get their first chance against the Cardinals.
"Sometimes you get less chances. Sometimes, when you fall behind early, you don’t get quality opportunities because teams can run the ball," Heyward said. "That’s just the way it is on the road. If you don’t get a lead early, if you don’t stop the run, they’re going to go back to it and continue to have success."
That was an issue, particularly early in the season when the Steelers played at New England and San Francisco. But offensive game plans also play a factor.
"Away games, we had the 49ers, New England. How many (sacks) did we have in New England, one?" Bud Dupree asked. "We had pressures. They throw the ball faster. Teams when they’re at home, they get a better tempo. San Francisco, they ran a lot. It’s (a) different type of scheme. They’re a West Coast (offensive) team. Arizona is, too."
The Cardinals are a West Coast-type offense. The idea is for rookie quarterback Kyler Murray to get the ball out of his hands quickly. But Murray has still been sacked a league-high 41 times this season. Over half, 26, of those sacks have come at home, meaning the Steelers might have some chances to add to their road total this week.
Part of the reason for that is because Murray holds onto the ball, trying to make plays. The other, however, is a porous offensive line.
"He’s a young guy, too. He’ll try to hold the ball and make plays," Dupree said. "Him being the No. 1 pick, he wants to make as many plays as he can."
Despite all of the pressure, Murray hasn't turned the ball over much. He's thrown just six interceptions this season, though the Cardinals don't ask him to throw it downfield a lot. He attempted just two passes of more than 10 yards down the field in the team's loss to the Rams last week. Los Angeles sacked Murray six times.
Murray also will run quite a bit. He leads the Cardinals in rushing and the team designs running plays for him.
"You can’t always attack the quarterback and you can’t always wait for the quarterback to come to you," Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler said. "You have to change it up. You have to throw them some fastballs sometimes and sometimes you have to throw some curves. And hopefully we will do well doing that. We have to play good football against these guys. If we do, we have a chance to win."
THE HISTORY LESSON
The Cardinals made the move from St. Louis to Phoenix in 1988, initially going by the Phoenix Cardinals before changing their name to the Arizona Cardinals in 1994.
The move to Phoenix gave the Steelers another team to play outside the Eastern Time Zone something that has long been an issue for the team. And the first two times the Steelers played in Arizona, they lost.
But in 1997, they finally got their first win in the state of Arizona after two previous trips to Phoenix to play the Cardinals -- they also lost the Super Bowl there at the end of the 1995 season.
The Steelers entered the game at 8-4, but coming off a loss the previous week to the Eagles. They needed a win to keep pace with the Jaguars in the AFC Central standings.
Arizona, meanwhile, was struggling along -- as usual -- at 3-9, but was coming off a win over the Ravens in Baltimore.
The game went back and forth throughout, with neither team taking more than a 7-point lead and the Steelers grabbing a 20-17 advantage with a 39-yard Norm Johnson field goal with 9:21 remaining in the fourth quarter.
But Johnson's kickoff went out of bounds, giving the Cardinals the ball back at their own 40 -- much to the chagrin of Steelers head coach Bill Cowher.
The Steelers had the Cardinals backed up to a third-and-15 on a Kevin Henry sack and Nolan Harrison stop of Leeland McElroy for a three-yard loss on a run, but Jake Plummer and Rob Moore connected on a 44-yard completion to the Pittsburgh 10.
McElroy ran for a four-yard gain on first down and Plummer scrambled for five yards on second down, leaving the Cardinals with third-and-1 with just under five minutes remaining. Safety Darren Perry stopped Larry Centers for a one-yard loss, however, and the Cardinals sent Joe Nedney out to kick a 19-yard game-tying field goal.
The Steelers punted the ball back to the Cardinals from midfield with just under two minutes remaining and Plummer hit Moore with a 36-yard pass on the first play from scrimmage -- beating Chad Scott a second time -- to get the ball to midfield.
Plummer then scrambled for 12 yards and connected with Moore for a 14-yard gain to set up Nedney for a 46-yard field goal attempt to win it.
Nedney missed, however, and the game went to overtime. The Cardinals won the toss, but a Jason Gildon sack and holding penalty forced a punt.
Taking over at their own 48, the Steelers quickly moved into Cardinals territory, with Kordell Stewart connecting with Yancey Thigpen for passes of 22 and 12 yards to the Arizona 15. Jerome Bettis took over from there, carrying the ball three times, the last being a 10-yard touchdown run to end the game, 26-20, and give the Steelers their first win in Arizona.
Bettis finished with 142 yards and three touchdowns on 36 carries, also catching two passes for 16 yards. Thigpen had five catches for 78 yards, while Stewart passed for 179 yards and rushed for another 29.
Plummer threw for 270 yards but the Steelers sacked him 10 times, with safety Carnell Lake leading the way with a career-high three.
But the Steelers had little answer for Moore, who had eight receptions for 188 yards.
THE MAIN MATCHUP
Murray was selected as the top pick in this year's draft, fresh off winning the Heisman Trophy Award last season at Oklahoma.
There were 254 players selected in this year's draft. There were another 300-plus signed in the couple of days following the draft.
Hodges wasn't among them, despite winning the Walter Payton Award as the top player in FCS last season at Samford.
He had to wait for an opportunity for a tryout at the Steelers' rookie minicamp to earn a spot just to be the team's fourth quarterback at training camp.
But last week, the undrafted rookie got the best of the 2017 Heisman Trophy winner and top pick in the 2018 draft, Baker Mayfield. This week, he'll get a shot to do the same against Murray.
"I think outperforming him would be winning the game and that is what matters," Hodges said. "It doesn’t matter how many yards I throw for or what, I just want to win the game."
Murray and Hodges will be two of 19 quarterbacks under the age of 27 to start in the NFL this weekend. Murray and Hodges are two of six rookie quarterbacks to win a game this season, the second-highest total in NFL history.
Murray has started all 12 games for the Cardinals this season. He's closing in on 3,000 passing yards and has 14 touchdown passes against 6 interceptions. He also leads the Cardinals in rushing with 446 yards and four touchdowns. He's been the kind of dynamic playmaker the Cardinals wanted.
But he's also coming off perhaps his worst game after completing just 55 percent of his passes for 163 yards and an interception in a 34-7 trouncing at the hands of the Rams last week.
"It’s just a disgusting feeling,” Murray said. “I’m sure you were disgusted watching it. I was disgusted being in it. Losing is losing, but that last game was a different type of losing.”
Hodges and the Steelers would like to continue that misery for at least one more week in the first meeting in NFL history between the reigning Heisman and Payton award winners.
And if the Payton Award winner can come out on top in this game, he'll match the Heisman winner's victory total this season.
"It is pretty unique playing against the Heisman winner and being the Walter Payton winner, the Heisman of the FCS. It is going to be a fun game," Hodges said.
Regardless of where they were drafted, both have earned high praise. The Steelers have raved about Murray's playmaking ability this week.
Meanwhile, Hodges, has earned the respect of Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, who last year at this time was coaching at Texas Tech.
“He has great poise," Kingsbury said. "I was telling our media people having been in a similar situation, kind of being a fringe, two, three, practice-squad-type quarterback, to be able to step in like he has done, the way he handled himself with poise, made some clutch throws, it’s really impressive to watch.”
THE QUOTES
• "(My life) hasn’t changed. I might have gotten some free duck hunting stuff sent to me, but other than that I am still Duck, I am still the same person I was a month ago." -- Hodges
• "That ball attracts a lot of attention. Anytime you carry that ball, you are going to get hit by some big men in this league. And if you carry it enough, you’ll get hit enough. How long do running backs last in this league if you think about it? If you are a running quarterback, how long are they going to last in this league? I don’t know. Right now, they are doing pretty good. We have to make it where it is not quite as comfortable as they like it. We have to get after them, and we have to attack them when they run the football." -- Butler on the trend of more running quarterbacks in the NFL
• “I would think they are going to take some shots. James Washington is a guy I am all too familiar with, having watched him light us up there at Texas Tech for a number of years. He is coming into his own. He is one of the best high-point catchers in football I have seen in college, and he is doing it now in the NFL. Throw a nice deep ball, you recognize the coverage and they started pushing the ball down the field more.” -- Kingsbury
THE TEN DATA POINTS
• The Steelers' five losses this season have come against teams with a combined record of 45-15.
• Since the 1970 NFL merger, the Steelers lead the AFC in victories against NFC teams with 112.
• Heyward needs 1.5 sacks to match Greg Lloyd (53.5) for eighth place on the Steelers' all-time list.
• Devin Bush leads all NFL rookies with 86 tackles, eight more than the Redskins' Cole Holcomb.
• Washington had 23 receptions for 378 yards and one touchdown in his first 20 career games. He has 20 receptions for 417 yards and three touchdowns in his past five games.
• The Steelers are 2-3 against the Cardinals all-time in Phoenix, but have won two of their past three there.
• The Cardinals rank last in the NFL in passing defense (307.5 yards per game), passing touchdowns allowed (31), 20-yard completions (60) and passer rating allowed (113.5).
• Over his past five games since returning from an injury, Christian Kirk leads the Cardinals with 8.4 pass targets per game. He has caught 25 passes for 289 yards and three touchdowns in that period.
• The game will feature two of the top five leaders in sacks. Arizona's Chandler Jones ranks third in the NFL with 13.0. T.J. Watt is fourth and leads the AFC with 12.5.
• Of players with at least 100 field goal attempts, Chris Boswell, who is 23 of 25 this season, ranks eighth in NFL history, having made 86.4 percent of his kicks.
FANTASY CORNER
Seriously Nick Foles? Seriously Ronald Jones? You can survive a bad running back week (Jones getting benched for failing to pick up a block) but you can't survive your quarterback getting benched at halftime. That's what happened to my lineup last week. So even though the rest of the lineup was OK -- not great, but OK -- it was a losing week. We'll go back to it this week with a Sunday-Monday slate on DraftKings.
Quarterback: Lamar Jackson ($7,400) -- Jackson barely threw for 100 yards last week and was still a QB1 thanks to his rushing ability. I don't expect him to tear up the Buffalo defense, but at $7,400 instead of much pricier, he's a value pick.
Running backs: Melvin Gordon ($6,400), James White ($5,500) -- Gordon should have plenty of success against a soft Jacksonville run defense, while White is essesntially the second receiving option in New England.
Wide receivers: Julio Jones ($7,500), Will Fuller ($5,500), Mike Williams ($4,500) -- Jones typically has a lot of success against the Panthers. Fuller and Williams are valuable deep threats on their teams. They are home run picks.
Tight end: Tyler Higbee ($3,400) -- I almost went with Vance McDonald here, but needed to save some cash. And if Gerald Everett sits again this week as expected, Higbee, who lit up the Cardinals last week, faces the Seahawks, who have allowed the second-most points to tight ends in fantasy football.
Flex: Aaron Jones ($6,700) -- Jones had a down game last week, but the Packers should have their way with the Redskins at home. And Jones should get a TD plunge or two.
Defense: Saints ($3,100) -- This looks like a low-scoring game between two very good teams. And the Saints will have the home crowd fired up.
Dale Lolley (7-5): It would be just like the Steelers to lose this game and win next week at home against the Bills. They are, after all, 2-3 on the road. But the Cardinals are an up-and-down team. The thing that jumps out the most is that, other than both games against the 49ers, whom they played well, is that they've held their own or won against the bad teams on their schedule, and largely been blown out when they've played a good defense, scoring 10 points against the Seahawks, 9 against the Saints and 7 last week against the Rams. The Steelers have a defense that is every bit as good, if not better, than those teams. This will again come down to the offense taking care of the football. And Arizona's pass defense is 32nd in the NFL and has given up 31 touchdown passes with just six interceptions. Steelers, 23-17
Christopher Carter (5-7): Much like the Steelers, the Cardinals don't have a single player with more than three receiving touchdowns. Kirk and Larry Fitzgerald are the top receivers, but Kirk is still developing chemistry with Murray, and Fitzgerald is well past his prime. Defensively, the Cardinals have been horrible under coordinator Vance Joseph, but they have individual talents that pose threats. Jones will be a tough player to block off the edge, while Budda Baker is a talented safety with 110 tackles. The Steelers need to pick at the Cardinals' lack of discipline on defense and build a lead. If they do that, Murray will get aggressive and that won't help. Steelers, 24-13
Hunter Homistek (7-5): Yeah, yeah, yeah ... Everyone expects the Steelers to lose this one. I get it. But they won't. The Steelers defense is going to confuse and fluster Murray, forcing the young quarterback to take hits and force passes. I expect three-four turnovers from the Cardinals, and that will be plenty to give Hodges and company what they need. Snell gets two total touchdowns (one rushing and one receiving) for good measure. Steelers, 27-14
Matt Sunday (8-4): This game will undoubtedly be more difficult than it should be for a team with a top-tier defense, but that’s what happens when you’re missing an impact receiver, starting running back and franchise quarterback. I just don’t think it will be enough for the Steelers to lose. Murray is mobile and talented, but he doesn’t have the poise or talent around him that Lamar Jackson does, and the Steelers were able to stifle Jackson’s mobility better than most. Steelers win. Defense and undefeated Duck. Steelers, 23-17
Dejan Kovacevic (6-6): It's almost inconceivable that any NFL offense, even one as ravaged as the Steelers', couldn't capitalize on facing the league's worst pass defense. And the Steelers will. Even with Duck at quarterback. Even with James Washington sure to encounter the first double-coverage of his NFL career. Even with JuJu Smith-Schuster, James Conner and so many others standing on the sideline. There won't be a ton of points, but there'll be enough. Because the other side of the ball will be the dominant factor, if not the bizarre feeling of a home-field advantage so far from home. Steelers, 23-13