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Steelers try to maintain momentum vs. struggling Cardinals

Posted 12/4/19

GLENDALE — The Cardinals have a No. 1 overall draft pick under center while the Pittsburgh Steelers have a guy named “Duck” throwing the ball around the field.

Yet it's the …

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Steelers try to maintain momentum vs. struggling Cardinals

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GLENDALE — The Cardinals have a No. 1 overall draft pick under center while the Pittsburgh Steelers have a guy named “Duck” throwing the ball around the field.

Yet it's the Steelers who are making a playoff push.

Pittsburgh (7-5) has won six of its past seven games heading into Sunday's road matchup against the Cardinals. It'll be the third start for Steelers quarterback Devlin “Duck” Hodges, a rookie free agent who has been steady for a team that relies heavily on its defense.

Hodges threw for 212 yards, one touchdown and one interception in last week's win against Cleveland. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin expects more of the same against the Cardinals.

“Football is the ultimate team game,” Tomlin said. “We try to live that out every day. When guys step up and deliver, it is just verification of it.”

The Cardinals (3-8-1) are stuck in a five-game losing streak and trying to bounce back from last weekend's 34-7 loss to the Rams, which was easily their worst effort of the season.

Arizona is rebuilding this season, so the team has been mostly upbeat even after losses. But players and coaches have made it known that getting embarrassed at home by the Rams wasn't acceptable. The Cardinals were down 20-0 by halftime and were never particularly competitive.

“Losing is losing, but that last game was a different type of losing," rookie quarterback Kyler Murray said.

Murray, the top overall pick in April, has been good for most of the season. He's already set a franchise rookie record with 2,866 yards passing despite a tough game against the Rams.

Most of the Cardinals problems are on defense, where they rank last in the NFL in total defense and passing defense. Los Angeles quarterback Jared Goff — who had been struggling for a few weeks — dominated the Cardinals for 424 yards passing and two touchdowns.

Arizona coach Kliff Kingsbury expects another tough challenge, even if Pittsburgh's offense hasn't put up huge numbers.

Kingsbury had a short, nomadic career as an NFL quarterback, bouncing between teams over a couple of seasons before becoming a coach. He said Hodges is making the most of his opportunity.

“I’ve been very impressed," Kingsbury said. “Having been in a similar situation, kind of that third-team practice-squad-type range, for him to step in and the poise he shows and protecting the football, you can tell those guys really play hard for him, and they believe in him. He moves around, makes some plays, and he’s been really sharp."

THREE'S A CROWD

Kingsbury was excited to have all three of the team's main running backs — Kenyan Drake, David Johnson and Chase Edmonds — healthy for the first time against the Rams on Sunday.

But the Cardinals offense never got on track. Drake ran for 31 yards, Johnson ran for 15 and Edmonds didn't get a carry.

Kingsbury said he still envisions a roll for all three against the Steelers.

“The (Rams) game got away from us, got a little funky, and we got out of some things we wanted to do and went back to dropping back, which is not what we want to do in those situations,” Kingsbury said. "That’s why you have to stay on schedule and can’t get down 27-0 or whatever it was.”

YOUTH MOVEMENT

If the Cardinals are going to get better defending the pass, they'll have to do it with a bunch of young players.

Arizona released veteran cornerback Tramaine Brock Sr. on Monday, which likely gives more playing time to Kevin Peterson and Chris Jones. Peterson is 25 and Jones is 24.

The Cardinals also have three rookies in the secondary who get substantial playing time, including cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. and safeties Jalen Thompson and Deionte Thompson.

MO POUNCEY, NO PROBLEMS

Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey returns to the lineup following a two-game suspension for his role in the brawl against Cleveland on Nov. 14. B.J. Finney filled in capably during Pouncey’s absence and Pittsburgh’s running game finally found some traction, topping 100 yards in consecutive contests for the first time this season. Pouncey said the unexpected break has the 10-year veteran feeling fresh heading into the home stretch.

“I feel like this is the beginning of the year,” Pouncey said. “I’ve got a lot of energy.”

HEISMAN VS WALTER

Sunday's game will pit Murray, last year's Heisman Trophy winner at Oklahoma, against Hodges, who won the Walter Payton Award at Samford.

The Walter Payton Award is given to the best offensive college player at the Football Championship Subdivision level.

“Now that you mention it, 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.

ONE-TWO PUNCH

Pittsburgh outside linebackers T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree have combined for 20½ sacks through 12 games, the highest total by a Steelers’ linebacker tandem since LaMarr Woodley and James Harrison did it in 2008. Watt was the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for November after getting 5½ sacks last month. Watt has at least a half-sack in nine straight games, the longest active streak in the NFL. Dupree has been no slouch. His 8½ sacks are a career high and his four forced fumbles are tied for fourth most in the NFL. Though Dupree typically plays on the left side and Watt on the right, Tomlin will occasionally have them flip to give offenses different looks.

“They’re interchangeable in an effort to keep people off-balance and to give them something to think about,” Tomlin said.

Steelers RB James Conner to miss 3rd straight game

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh running back James Conner's aching right shoulder will keep him out of the lineup for a third straight game when the surging Steelers visit the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.

Conner took some reps with the scout team on Thursday but declared himself out as the effects of the sprained AC joint he suffered in late October continue to linger. Conner initially hurt the shoulder in the final minutes of a victory over Miami on Oct. 28. He briefly returned against Cleveland on Nov. 14 but managed just 16 yards on six touches before exiting.

“I just wasn’t ready to come back," Conner said. “Tried to fight through it but wasn’t able to. I wouldn’t say (it was a) mistake but I tried to give it a go and just wasn’t ready."

A Pro Bowler last season after taking over for Le'Veon Bell, Conner appeared to be emerging from a sluggish start when he ran for 145 yards against the Dolphins before going down following a 6-yard carry just before the two-minute warning. He declined to give a timetable on when he'll be ready to go.

“I don’t want to look too far ahead," Conner said. “Hopefully I can get out there as soon as possible. But this week? No.”

Rookie Benny Snell has taken over during Conner's most recent absence, running for 161 yards and a touchdown in victories over Cincinnati and Cleveland that kept the Steelers (7-5) in the race for a playoff spot in the AFC. Conner praised Snell's development, calling the fourth-round pick's development “great." Snell is part of a committee that includes Jaylen Samuels, Trey Edmunds and Kerrith Whyte. Pittsburgh has gone over 100 yards rushing in consecutive weeks for the first time this season and will get center Maurkice Pouncey back following a two-game suspension for his role in a late-game brawl against the Browns last month.

“I’m proud of them," Conner said. “They’re doing great. All of them ... it’s been a group effort. It’s been cool to see.”

The shoulder problem has put Conner in a delicate situation. He has one year left on the contract he signed after being selected in the third round of the 2017 draft following a spectacular career at the University of Pittsburgh. Though he's been highly productive at times — he topped 100 yards five times in Pittsburgh's first nine games last season — he's also had trouble staying on the field. His rookie season ended with a knee injury and a leg injury forced him to miss three games during the Steelers' second-half collapse in 2018.

Conner switched to a larger set of shoulder pads against the Browns in hopes of better protecting the shoulder but it quickly became apparent he couldn't continue. It's also led him to use an abundance of caution this time around.

“Obviously I’m a competitor and I want to be out there,” he said. “Just ain’t ready.”

NOTES: WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee) did not practice and will not play against the Cardinals. ... WR Dionate Johnson (illness) was a full participant after being limited on Wednesday because of an illness.

AP Sports Writer Will Graves in Pittsburgh contributed to this story.