Steelers vs. Cowboys: Top Takeaways From The Hall of Fame Game
It wasn’t the best football, but it was football at least.
Thursday’s night Hall of Fame Game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys ended in a 16-3 rout by the Steelers.
We got to see the first-round picks from both teams in action in front of a festive crowd that was celebrating this year’s class of Hall of Famers, including Peyton Manning and Calvin Johnson. These squads each had their issues last season, so this game was a preview of sorts of what’s to come.
Here were the top takeaways from the game:
Micah Parsons
No. 11 Micah Parsons
Cowboys got themselves a baller in Parsons. Watching him play, it felt like he was everywhere on the field in the playtime he got. He recorded just three tackles but when you watched him, it looked like with more playing time he was on the way to having himself a game. He even recorded a fumble and made great solo stops and that’s what you wanted to see if you’re the Boys who struggled against the run last year. And not to mention, fellow draft classmate Maurice Canady also looked like a playmaker himself with a big loss for downs on a run play that you can see here:
Dallas Backup QBs
If Dak Prescott's shoulder injury becomes a real issue, then the Boys are on their way to another 2020 season. Garrett Gilbert was decent, he threw for 104 yards (9-13). He missed an easy potential TD to Michael Gallup but he made a strong showing for QB2. He stood in the pocket to make throws like a vet but he also took a sack on a potential scoring drive that made the team settle for an FG. But beyond him, is just bad quarterbacks. Ben DiNucci was throwing off his back foot, cross body, and eventually an interception, posting a 33.7 QB rating. It is a wonder how Cooper Rush is still on this roster.
Steelers Run Game
Mason Rudolph handing the ball off to Najee Harris
The Steelers were dead last year in running the ball. To make up for this, they drafted Najee Harris who looks to be an impact running back potentially especially with how he looked for Alabama. But they are putting on the field new starters for the offensive lineman and they didn’t generate a lot of rushing yards (76 YDS). They went to what they knew best and that’s the quick passes to get their players in space. Not to say that they will be bad again but we didn’t see much improvement either.
