Ryan Kennedy is a Lions fans. The Ravens are currently Ryan Kennedy fans.
The man who provoked Steelers receiver DK Metcalf to approach the stands, grab his shirt, yank him down, and throw a hand/fist toward his face (possibly grazing it) has potentially derailed Pittsburgh’s season, opening the door for Baltimore to swipe the AFC North.
Obviously, Metcalf should have restrained himself. Even more obviously, the Steelers should have had someone/anyone in place to intervene before Metcalf got to Kennedy. The team has no one to blame but itself for failing to stop Metcalf from approaching, and then initiating contact with, an opposing fan.
Metcalf’s absence was evident on Sunday in Cleveland. The series of plays at the end of the game included three straight passes thrown by quarterback Aaron Rodgers to former Packers teammate Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Two had no chance at all. One would have required the kind of athleticism that Valdes-Scantling wasn’t able to display in the moment. And, each time, Valdes-Scantling was blanketed by Browns cornerback Denzel Ward.
If it had been Metcalf facing single coverage on the right side of the formation, the chances of at least one of those throws connecting would have been significantly higher. And it may not have even come down to that drive, if Metcalf had been available throughout the game. (In the Week 5 game against Cleveland, Metcalf had four catches for 95 yards and a touchdown.)
Metcalf will serve the second leg of his two-game suspension on Sunday night, against the Ravens. In Week 14, he had seven catches for 148 yards at Baltimore.
Which receiver on the Pittsburgh roster can come close to replacing that production? On Sunday, Adam Thielen got the start as the Steelers opened with three tight ends on the field. Thielen participated in 86 percent of the snaps. Three other receivers played: Valdes-Scantling (82 percent), Scotty Miller (64 percent), and Roman Wilson (14 percent). (Ben Skowronek played special teams only, and Calvin Austin III was inactive due to a hamstring injury.)
Miller finished with three catches for 25 yards. Valdes-Scantling had three catches for 21 yards, on nine targets. Thielen had two catches for 14 yards. Wilson had zero targets, even though coach Mike Tomlin specifically mentioned Wilson as a candidate to step up in place of Metcalf, with Tomlin’s T-shirt worthy line: “One man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity.”
Metcalf’s misfortune has damaged Pittsburgh’s opportunity to make the playoffs. Will it be any different this weekend? (Former Rodgers teammate Allen Lazard remains available.)
There’s some good news for Week 18. Rodgers may not be rushing his throws as much in the regular-season finale, given that he won’t be seemingly obsessed with not joining the record books as the quarterback whom Myles Garrett sacked for the single-season record.
