3 key matchups to watch as Panthers face Steelers

Big Ben against the defense

Ben Roethlisberger is a future Hall-of-Famer. There is no doubt about that. The Carolina Panthers defense will be tested on Thursday against a signal-caller who knows how to win.

Against the Baltimore Ravens last Sunday, he had a tremendous game. He went 28-of-47 on the day, throwing for 270 yards and two touchdowns. A 51-yard pass was his longest on the day. Although he may have struggled with accuracy, having zero interceptions was a bonus. This marked only the third time this season in which Roethlisberger had not thrown a pick. As long as he does not beat himself with the interceptions, he is difficult to stop.

Eric Reid and Donte Jackson each had an interception against the Buccaneers and their ball hawking skills were on full display. Against a talented Pittsburgh offense that can put up points in a hurry, they will need to have those same instincts on Thursday. Particularly with Roethlisberger, he is known to throw the ball down the field to Brown. Yardage -wise he has had most success in between the numbers. Per statistics from Pro Football Focus, he has thrown for 840 yards. Another area where is he particularly effective is on the outside right receiver side. He has a 60.8 completion percentage on passes thrown for 20 yards or more. The Panthers will have to be mindful of that throughout the course of the game.

This will truly be a team effort. The defensive line will have to get to Roethlisberger in a hurry, while the cornerbacks will have to do a good job of playing up on their man and not allowing the receivers to get separation. If the Panthers can do that, they should be able to stop the Pittsburgh offensive attack. Failure to do so, and the team could be in for a long night.