The Pittsburgh Steelers opened the season with an impressive victory over the Washington Redskins. Going into the game, I wasn't sure what to expect. The Steelers are plagued with injuries and suspensions right now. I was still really concerned about the secondary and the pass defense. On the Redskins first couple possessions the secondary looked as bad as I remembered. But what the Steelers defense does is bend but don't break. Washington only came away with two field goals to start the game. Then Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown took over the game. From the second quarter on the Steelers did what ever they wanted on offense. The offensive line was dominant all game. The passing attack and running game both looked lethal.

Keep in mind that many of the Steelers offensive starters are either injured or suspended. Yet they still were able to put 38 points on the board. Washington had no answer for Antonio Brown who had 126 yards receiving with two touchdowns. I was surprised that Brown wasn't covered by Josh Norman all the time. I understand he's a zone corner, but if your going to pay him 15 million dollars a year, he should cover the best receiver. Deangelo Williams continues to be an ageless running back. He showed great patience and footwork all night. Williams rushed for 143 yards with two touchdowns. Ben Roethlisberger threw for 300 yards with 3 touchdown passes.

I'm still not sure what to make of the defense. There is a serious lack of talent in the secondary. Washington's quarterback Kirk Cousins played a bad game. He made poor decisions all night with bad accuracy on many throws. This makes it hard to judge the Steelers defensive performance. The Steelers played zone defense the whole night, because defensive coordinator Keith butler knows they can't play man coverage. The rookie Artie Burns did not see the field all night. I'm also not sure when will see new acquisition Justin Gilbert play.

Overall I still think this was an impressive opener for Pittsburgh. From the second quarter on they completely controlled the game dominating both lines of scrimmage. Next week will be a good test when the hated Cincinnati Bengals come to Heinz field. They're a much better team than Washington, with one of the best receivers in football. A.J. Green was dominant against Darrelle Revis in the opening week. So i'm really worried about what he can do to the Steelers poor secondary. I'm hoping the offense will remain lethal even though the Bengals have a much better defense than the Redskins.