The Steelers take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at CenturyLink Field and it will be a challenge on both sides of the ball. Steelers players shared their take on two of the top Seahawks players who will present that challenge, quarterback Russell Wilson and cornerback Richard Sherman.
Here is what they had to say.
Linebacker Arthur Moats on what makes Russell Wilson special:
"His ability to create and improvise as far as when the pocket breaks down. He is able to create with his legs, but at the same time make smart decisions. That is what really helps him be successful."
Safety Rob Golden on Wilson:
"He is a great competitor. He is always trying to win. He tries to put his team in the best situations possible so he always tries to extend plays and do whatever he has to do to win downs. We have to do whatever we can to contain him."
Linebacker Sean Spence on Wilson:
"He is smart. He has a great arm. It's remarkable the things he does. It's going to be hard to duplicate in practice. We are going to have our hands full this week."
Coach Mike Tomlin on Wilson:
"He presents many challenges, his arms, his legs, his eyes and his mind. The things that he is able to do really stresses the defense. His ability to extend plays, his willingness and ability to escape yet keep his eyes down field, which allows zone defenses to dissolve or break down, and his ability to move the chains, he can do it with his legs. His ability to read and diagnose things quickly, and his ability to make quick decisions make him a tall task. They do a great job of highlighting his skill set, formally and schematically, but also leaving latitude for him to do things from an improvisation standpoint makes him the player that he is. We have to rush him. We have to rush him smart. We have to work to minimize containment. His pocket movement game is special. His ability to throw on the run and his accuracy on the run is very good. We have to rush hard and smart. We have to contain him. We cannot allow him to escape down the middle of the pocket. He is really dangerous when he does that."
Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger on cornerback Richard Sherman:
"You have to be aware of where he is and what he's doing. I'm not going to throw every single pass at him, but I have a lot of respect for him as a football player, very smart player, a technician in his craft. It's going to be a big test for myself and for A.B. and whoever else he's covering."
Tomlin on Sherman:
"Richard Sherman is quite frankly one of the best in the business. He is good on the line of scrimmage. He is long. He is combative. But I think that's just a portion of his game. I've been really impressed as I have studied him in preparation for this game for his above the neck game, the things that he sees and understands about route combinations and the things he understands about formations and splits. All of that is very evident in his production and comes out in his play. He is good below the neck but he is also good above the neck. That's what makes him one of the best in the business."
