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BEEN THERE, DONE THAT:** QB William Gay has done what Philadelphia's Carson Wentz is about to _ take on the Steelers' defense as a rookie.

Mettenberger did so in 2014 with the Titans and has a pretty good idea what Wentz and the Eagles ought to expect.

"Coach LeBeau (former defensive coordinator Dick), there's always going to be some sort of wrinkle you just don't prepare for," Mettenberger said. "That's when you have to know the plays."

Mettenberger completed 15 of 24 passes for 263 yards, with two touchdowns, one interception and a passer rating of 110.2 in a 27-24 Steelers' victory.

The Steelers have changed defensive coordinators since then, but Mettenberger anticipates a similar approach in dealing with Wentz.

"We're gonna throw some stuff at him, I'm sure," Mettenberger said. "We're not going to make it easy. You just have to roll with it and kind of just play ball and adjust as you go."

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FAMILIAR LOOK:** The Steelers haven't played the Eagles since 2012, they haven't played in Philadelphia since 2008 and they've never played against Wentz.

But they played against the Chiefs last season, when current Eagles head coach Doug Pederson was the offensive coordinator in Kansas City, and that should help with familiarity.

"They're going to do a lot of the things they did in Kansas City because they were successful," Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler said. "You're going to use what's successful in the league and they certainly were in Kansas City and some of those things are showing up on film at Philadelphia.

"The zone-read is familiar, some of the formations they're running are familiar. They're going to take shots (down the field). They're going to mix it up some, up-tempo a little bit and then slow the tempo down a little bit, change personnel and use their personnel different ways, same as Kansas City does."

REPEAT AS NECESSARY: Jordan Berry had a 47.1-yard gross average and a 42.3-yard net average on eight punts in last Sunday's 24-16 victory over Cincinnati.

The Bengals started possessions at the Cincinnati 10-, 9-, 3-, 8- and 9-yard lines following Steelers punts.

"Having that many punts and being able to execute well on all of them was real good but I don't feel like it was anything too crazy," Berry said. "It was just getting out there and doing what we can do.

"We've been working on getting my directional (punting) better. The better I am at my directional, then it's going to make it easier for the coverage guys to get down there. We're just trying to work as a unit and be the best we can be."

WELCOME BACK: The Bengals game was TE David Johnson's first at Heinz Field since 2013, his last season in his first five-season go-around with the Steelers.

The experience was what Johnson had remembered.

"You come running out wearing black and gold, it's always something special," he said. "It makes you pick your game up a little bit, I think."

Johnson returned this season as a free agent, a different player after spending two seasons in San Diego.

"I never really wanted to leave but that's sometimes how free agency goes," he said. "That was a learning experience for me to go and come back. I stayed healthy while I was there and I learned a lot. I got in better shape and I've just grown a lot mentally.

"I came back better."