By: G.Stryker, Twitter @SNStryker and Instagram @SNStryker
SteelerNation.com
Games are full of special moments. Most are easy to see and are part of the highlight reel each week. Some moments happen just out of the limelight of the big play, but without their efforts, those big plays don't happen. These hidden plays can be a block, a pressure, a tip, or football IQ creating the impact that is the difference between success and failure.
Football IQ is something that can be learned over time. It’s why veterans rarely make rookie mistakes, but sometimes young players can show they have an understanding of the game beyond their years. At 23 years of age, JuJu Smith-Schuster is not the oldest wide receiver on the team, but he has been in the league longer than the rest of them. His 4th year of experience has already shown him that fumbles can cost your team a victory. On this day, his previous negative experiences paid off in a big way.
Two plays after Cam Heyward picked off the New York Giants in the endzone to end a marathon 19-play, 9-minute drive, the Pittsburgh Steelers regained momentum and were on the move. Smith-Schuster starts as the inside slot in a bunch-left formation and goes into motion right. Benny Snell takes the handoff and looks for the B-gap between the right guard and tackle, but it isn’t open so he bounces it outside of the tackle. Smith-Schuster has a nice block on the corner as Snell runs by him. Instead of stopping his assignment, Smith-Schuster follows the play up the sideline another 15 yards. The Giants strip Snell of the football, Smith-Schuster sees it immediately, and dives for it in between 8 Giant defenders to secure the loose football.
Had the Giants recovered, they could have wrestled back momentum in a close football game down by only 6 points. Instead, the Steelers retained possession and ended the drive with the game icing points as the field goal gave them a 9 point lead. JuJu Smith-Schuster has endured his fair share of late game fumbles that wrestled victory from the Steelers. But on this day, he was the hero working hard and following the play to save possession and the win for the Pittsburgh Steelers!
The play can be viewed below. Subscribe to the Steeler Nation YouTube Channel to be the first to see video analysis and VidCasts of the SN Podcast:
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