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Steelers HC Mike Tomlin: "They're making splash plays and they're competitive"

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Photos of the Raiders taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers throughout the years.

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Q: How tough is it to see Le'Veon Bell go down? Does it help that you have a couple of games of experience with DeAngelo Williams handling the load?

Coach Tomlin:"Injuries are part of the game of football. Obviously we've played without Le'Veon already this year. We've got a lot of confidence in DeAngelo, that's why we acquired him and brought him here. On a personal level, obviously, you feel for Le'Veon, but he's a competitor and a professional. I'm sure he'll come back stronger than ever."

Q: Do you feel like Ben Roethlisberger is going to feel a little bit more comfortable now that he has a game under his belt after the injury?

Coach Tomlin:"He's only been doing this about 12 years. I'm sure he's pretty comfortable, but he's better equipped to answer that than I am."

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Q: What do you see out of the Raiders? They seem to be off to a decent start to the season. **

Coach Tomlin:"They're making splash plays and they're competitive. They're young talent is performing. [Derek] Carr is really impressive. [Amari] Cooper is impressive. [Khalil] Mack is impressive. Mario Edwards Jr. is impressive. They're getting great contributions from young talent. They appear to be a team that's on the rise."

Q: The rushing defense has been pretty good and did a really good job last week against the Jets. What do you see from that group that is able to stop the run so well?

Coach Tomlin:"I see guys winning individual battles, guys coming off of blocks and making tackles, and that's football. Those guys are doing a really good job of utilizing their hands, controlling the line of scrimmage and being ball aware – containing and constricting the ball. Seeing it consistently from guys like Mack and Mario Edwards and Dan Williams. It starts inside and up front and they're getting those type of contributions from those men and others."

Q: Derek has got good numbers this year against the blitz. For a young quarterback, I would imagine that's a good sign. Are you impressed with what you've seen from how he reacts to blitzes?

Coach Tomlin:"You know, he's a young guy, but he's played a lot for them. I think that on-the-job training from a year ago has served him well. In regards to how he deals with the blitz, so their playing regarding it, I don't have intimate details on – they'd be better equipped to evaluate his play."

Q: Charles Woodson still seems to be getting it done. Are you at the point where you're not even amazed by what he's doing anymore?

Coach Tomlin:"Man, this guy has really had a legendary, legendary career. I think we all should just appreciate what he does while we still have an opportunity to see him do it, because he is a generational guy. He's a special guy. He's done it at a high level for an extremely long period of time."

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