HEATH MILLER
Tight End

With Ben Roethlisberger back in the starting lineup for the first time in 35 days following his rehabilitation of a sprained knee and a bone bruise sustained in the Sept. 27 game against the Rams in St. Louis, there was a reasonable expectation that the Steelers passing game would perk up considerably. That didn't happen, but it had nothing to do with Heath Miller not being his usually reliable self.

With Roethlisberger showing signs of rust associated with a month of inactivity, the Steelers offense was not sharp outside of a game-opening possession in which the unit drove 80 yards in 12 plays for a touchdown. After that opening drive, the Steelers would convert only one more third down situation, and they were 0-for-2 in the red zone.

But over the course of the 16-10 loss to the Bengals at Heinz Field today, Heath Miller was consistently reliable. Miller finished with a team-best 10 catches for 105 yards, he drew a pass interference penalty that converted a third-and-2 late in the fourth quarter, and he also drew an unnecessary roughness penalty on safety George Iloka after making a catch over the middle that tacked on an additional 15 yards to the play.

Heath Miller is the Steelers Digest Player of the Week.

Also considered were Antwon Blake, who had eight tackles and his second interception of the season, which came 2 yards deep in the end zone and thwarted one Bengals' attempt at taking a lead in the fourth quarter; Cam Heyward, who had three tackles, a hit on the quarterback, a pass batted at the line of scrimmage, and a blocked field goal; Ryan Shazier, who had eight tackles, including two for loss, and shared a sack with Jarvis Jones; Mike Mitchell, who had five tackles, an interception, and two passes defensed; and DeAngelo Williams, who rushed nine times for 71 yards and caught four passes for 39 more to finish with 110 yards from scrimmage.