It's no secret that Mike Wallace is a big-play threat for the offense, but it's more apparent now that he and Ben Roethlisberger tied a Steelers record for most touchdowns of 40 yards or more by a quarterback-wide receiver combination. They tied the record set by Bubby Brister and Louis Lipps, who also combined for seven touchdowns of 40 yards or more.
Wallace pulled in a 43-yard touchdown pass from Roethlisberger in the second quarter against the Panthers to give the Steelers a 10-0 lead.
"He's doing a lot of different things and I told him (Thursday) he did something that I have been waiting for him to do, and that was on the deep ball, come back to it," said Roethlisberger. "Make that play on our sideline, on their sideline. That's something a lot of speed guys can't always do. If it's short, they kind of let it go. He did a great job. He stopped and he came back and made a play. That's what I was probably most happy to see from him."
With Wallace only in his second year, and continually developing, it's a record that the two should break.
"He's a young man in development," said Coach Mike Tomlin. "I like where he is right now, but he is capable of more. I like a guy that is producing plays to help us win, but at the same time I understand that there is more out there for him. He's got a desire to be a great player and he works at it every day."
Wallace finished the Panthers game with four receptions for 104 yards. It was his sixth 100-yard game of the season, tying him with Yancey Thigpen (1997) for most 100-yard games in a season. Only John Stallworth (1984) has had more 100-yard games in a season with seven.
"I had an okay game but I feel like I could have done some things better," said Wallace. "I feel like I should have had 200 yards. I missed a pass out there."
