AB, JuJu on pace to make franchise history
PITTSBURGH 鈥� All鈥檚 well the day after Pro Bowl invitations go out 鈥� for about 30 seconds.
That鈥檚 about how long it took Ben Roethlisberger to shift from expressing his happiness for Antonio Brown to his despair for another of his receivers who didn鈥檛 make it.
鈥淚 think JuJu should鈥檝e made it, as well,鈥� Roethlisberger said.
Heading into New Orleans, JuJu Smith-Schuster leads the AFC with 95 receptions, just ahead of his now seven-time Pro Bowl teammate Brown, who has 90 catches.
Should the wrong be righted and Smith-Schuster joins Brown on the Pro Bowl squad, they would become the third set of Steelers receivers to earn the honor in the same year. The others are Louis Lipps-John Stallworth (1984 season) and Brown-Mike Wallace (2011).
But no other tandem has put up the numbers Smith-Schuster and Brown are in the process of putting up this season:
n Smith-Schuster 95 receptions, 1,274 yards, 6 touchdowns.
n Brown 90 receptions, 1,112 yards, 13 touchdowns.
That鈥檚 enough to make them the fifth WR tandem in Steelers history with 1,000 yards apiece, but they鈥檙e also on verge of something that鈥檚 never been done in franchise history: 100 receptions and 1,000 yards apiece.
With two games remaining, here鈥檚 how they project to finish the 2018 season:
n Smith-Schuster 109 receptions, 1,456 yards, 7 touchdowns.
n Brown 103 receptions, 1,271 yards, 15 touchdowns.
They could 鈥� and should, if their health holds up 鈥� become the sixth WR duo in NFL history to join the 2 x 100/1,000 club.
Their projections are historic. The Brown/Smith-Schuster tandem would end up tied for second all-time in catches (212) with Emmanuel Sanders/Demaryius Thomas of the 2014 Broncos, and behind only the all-time catches (231) and yardage (3,174) tandem of Herman Moore/Brett Perriman from the 1995 Lions.
The Pro Bowl snub is a product of the system, but the club these guys are on the verge of joining is plain historic.
鈥淚t would be amazing, man,鈥� said Smith-Schuster. 鈥淚 remember when I was a kid watching Ben and AB work every day. To have an opportunity to be a part of Steelers history, that鈥檚 pretty cool. I didn鈥檛 know that. That鈥檚 awesome.鈥�
It obviously took away the sting from not making his first Pro Bowl team, because Smith-Schuster has been outstanding this season. He鈥檚 ripped off yet another team-record 97-yard touchdown catch, and also had big-play touchdown catches of 75, 67 and 35 yards. Smith-Schuster also has two catches of 43 yards, including the hook-and-ladder in the final seconds of the Oakland loss.
鈥淢an, that right there, that play, we worked on that play e-v-e-r-y Friday,鈥� Smith-Schuster said. 鈥淲e thought, 鈥楳an, this play might come in handy.鈥� There was one time we were going to run it 鈥� it was a home game and we jumped offsides on the punt and it pretty much ended the game 鈥� but that was a play we鈥檝e always had in our back pocket. It just so happened it worked out perfectly against Oakland.鈥�
What鈥檚 been JuJu鈥檚 favorite catch this season?
鈥淚鈥檇 say the 97-yarder,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 my favorite. You don鈥檛 get those very often.鈥�
Only one per year. Smith-Schuster matched his own longest pass play in team history 鈥� caught in Detroit as a rookie 鈥� with a 97-yard touchdown catch in Denver.
Aren鈥檛 those catch, run, juke, stiff-arm, run some more, stiff-arm some more, long, 97-yard plays exhausting?
鈥淪o exhausting,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut it pays off though. It鈥檚 crazy because like once you score and you finish and you watch it, you鈥檙e like 鈥楳an, did I really just do that?鈥� It鈥檚 crazy.鈥�
Brown鈥檚 downfield block in Denver sprung Smith-Schuster for the end zone-to-end zone touchdown, but of course that wasn鈥檛 Smith-Schuster鈥檚 favorite AB play this season.
鈥淏engals game. Easy one,鈥� Smith-Schuster said.
Brown, you may remember, hit the Bengals with a 31-yard touchdown catch in the final seconds to steal a win in Cincinnati.
Brown leads all NFL receivers with 13 touchdown catches. The list includes receptions of 78, 53, 47, 46 and 43 yards. Brown also caught a short pass he took for 48 yards against the Bengals that left two cornerbacks injured and set up a field goal.
The numbers are dizzying, for sure, but they鈥檙e important to note because this historic statistical season for Brown, Smith-Schuster and, of course, Roethlisberger, hasn鈥檛 been built on tunnel screens and now passes. These are big plays that have added up to these once-in-a-lifetime numbers.
Then again, Brown left numbers out of the equation when asked to name his favorite play this season.
鈥淭he next play we make,鈥� he said with a laugh.