Steelers News: Mike Hilton hopeful to return to lineup vs. Falcons in Week 5 The Pittsburgh Steelers are back in the loser column after a poor performance vs. their divisional rival Javon Hargrave Jersey , the Baltimore Ravens, at Heinz Field in prime time in Week 4. With the Atlanta Falcons coming into Heinz Field for a Week-5 matchup, the Steelers will need to improve on their 1-2-1 record. Something I did last season and I’m going to start again is the Black-and-Gold Links article. This is an article where I take stories from quality news sources across the Internet, and add them here for your viewing pleasure. I won’t be posting the entire articles, but I’ll link each story and author so that you can read the full article. Today we update some key injuries, most notably cornerback Mike Hilton Let’s get to the news:Free of pain, Steelers’ Hilton hoping to return against FalconsBy: Joe Rutter, Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewSlot cornerback Mike Hilton still has some stiffness in his elbow, plus lingering fluid that is preventing him from fully extending it, but he is optimistic about returning Sunday afternoon when the Pittsburgh Steelers play the Atlanta Falcons.Hilton did not practice Wednesday and Friday last week and was limited to individual drills Thursday.“The pain is pretty much out of the way,” Hilton said Monday. “If I get the full range of motion, I’ll be ready to go.”Cameron Sutton replaced Hilton in the slot against the Ravens. The Steelers were without two regulars in Hilton and safety Morgan Burnett (groin). Safety Nat Berhe, who played in certain subpackages, left the game with a pectoral injury and was sporting a sling on his left arm Monday. Linebacker L.J. Fort was used in subpackages for the first time this season, logging 11 defensive snaps.“It’s frustrating, but it’s part of the game,” Hilton said. “We know it’s the next-man-up mentality. Some guys have to step up and be in positions now with a couple guys down. We have guys that can do it, we just have to put it all together.”Tim Benz: An airing of grievances after Steelers’ lackluster effort vs. RavensBy: Tim Benz, Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewOur inaugural ”Airing Of Grievances” column after the Pittsburgh Steelers’ loss to the Chiefs two weeks ago was so wildly popular, I think we are going to have to make this a tradition after any defeat the Steelers suffer.Heck, maybe some wins, too.If there are any moving forward. With the way this season is going, there may be far more of the former than the latter.There are plenty of grievances to air in the wake of Baltimore’s 26-14 victory Sunday night at Heinz Field.Third-down offenseThis is where the game was lost for the Steelers. Their third-down offense was an abomination.The unit was 2 of 12 on third-down attempts. Most of that was due to horrid execution. There were misfired passes, a lack of open receivers and some blocks missed here and there.Popcorn, as coach Mike Tomlin will probably say Tuesday.Some of the play calls were atrocious, too.鈥?On the second possession of the game, on third-and-18, there was a short pass underneath to James Conner. It merely seemed to be an effort to get a few yards back before a punt. Already trailing 14-0, the Steelers appeared to concede that drive in a game where every possession was going to be necessary to come back.鈥?On third-and-3 from the Baltimore 20 after an Alex Collins fumble, Ben Roethlisberger lofted up a deep shot down the sideline to Antonio Brown right off the snap.Why try that there? Even if Brown had single coverage, don’t you want Roethlisberger surveying the field with multiple options in the red zone on a possession-down like that instead of tossing up a 50-50 ball to Brown against a taller defender in Marlon Humphrey?鈥?On the first drive after halftime, the Steelers went three-and-out following a short pass to the left of the formation to Ryan Switzer. It lost 5 yards, and the team had to punt.Third-down defenseMeanwhile, the Steelers defense “held” the Ravens to 8 of 17 on third downs. That looks decent on paper. But keep in mind, that includes two failed conversions where Baltimore was essentially winding down the clock at the end of each half. Plus, there was a lame “What the heck? If it’s there, it’s there” throw through the goal post from Joe Flacco on third-and-7 before Justin Tucker’s game-sealing field goal to make it 26-14.”They converted third downs. They possessed the ball. We didn’t get off the field,” defensive end Cameron Heyward said. “That’s not a good recipe for success.”It’s unfortunate. It sucks. I’m (ticked) off we didn’t get the job done.”Yeah, that pretty much says it all.Rotten startsThe Steelers have been dreadful when it comes to starting quickly at Heinz Field of late. Check out these numbers in the last three games at Heinz Field — the Jacksonville divisional-round playoff game and the two regular-season losses in 2018.:::More in the link above:::Ryan Switzer increasingly part of the Steelers’ offenseBy: Chris Adamski, Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewThe Pittsburgh Steelers’ leading pass-catcher Sunday wasn’t All Pro Antonio Brown, nor was it emerging JuJu Smith-Schuster. In fact, it wasn’t any wide receiver or tight end – or even a starter.It was Ryan Switzer.Acquired the final week of the preseason from Oakland in a swap of late-round draft picks, Switzer caught all seven of the balls Ben Roethlisberger threw his way in the 26-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Including a second-half rush, Switzer had eight touches among the 21 offensive snaps he played.Counting special teams (Switzer is the Steelers’ punt and kick returner) no skill player had more touches for the Steelers than Switzer. Perhaps even more notable than Switzer’s overall usage is that the Steelers often lined him up in the backfield in lieu of starting running back James Conner.“I am just trying to continue to make a name for myself,” Switzer said, “continue to learn my role in this offense and continue to learn Ben’s trust and coaching staff’s trust.”For a team that rarely took Le’Veon Bell off the field in recent years past, Conner sat out 13 of the Steelers’ 73 offensive snaps. Neither other running back on the team (Stevan Ridley and Jaylen Samuels) played on offense Sunday.Coach Mike Tomlin said the decision to use Switzer instead of Conner was “just personnel packages that we worked within.“He’s a valuable component of our offense and has been a nice contributor.”Le’Veon Bell’s absence finally catching up to SteelersBy: Jeremy Fowler, ESPNNo matter how much the Pittsburgh Steelers have tried to separate themselves from Le’Veon Bell, his absence was deeply felt Sunday night.The Steelers needed an equalizer to settle down the offense when things went awry in the second half of their 26-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. What they got was a near 5-1 ratio of pass to run in their most physical rivalry.The Steelers always knew they would miss Bell, who’s still sitting out with an unsigned franchise tag as the team explores trading him. Otherwise, teammates wouldn’t have responded so fiercely to his absence in Week 1. They knew he changed the dynamic.As a counter, players and coaches sold a bold new attack behind James Conner, who runs hard and is a better pass-catcher than advertised.Still Sutton Smith Pittsburgh Steelers Jersey , the transition from All-Pro to first-year starter manifested in Conner’s 19 yards on nine carries Sunday. The Steelers were outmatched regardless of the running back in a Week 2 loss to Kansas City, but this week felt different as Baltimore ran 30 times for 96 yards.Several Steelers pointed to the Ravens’ quick 14-0 lead as a reason to abandon the run.”The run game, as long as we’re efficient, we’re getting yards here or there,” guard Ramon Foster said. “You get behind the chains a little bit and you have to throw it. That’s not an issue to be frantic about. We’re a team that always finds a way.”Foster is saying the right things, but getting “yards here or there” doesn’t sound like the tone-setting offense the Steelers’ line wants to be. Omitted from the combine invitation list and ignored in the NFL draft, Denver Broncos rookie running back Phillip Lindsay has gone from head-scratcher to head-turner."I remember the first couple of times I watched him five, six weeks ago on video, I had to get a flip card to figure out who he was," Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said.Broncos star linebacker Von Miller knows the feeling. He recalled that when Lindsay first showed up, he was known simply by the No. 2 jersey he wore."When he was No. 2 running here in OTAs, nobody really knew who he was," Miller said. "He was catching screens and passes all over the place. Then he got a little bit of success and he was the exact same guy. Hats off to Phillip for doing that. For being from Colorado, going to CU and having a whole town on your back, it can be tough. But he's been the exact same guy."As in, the Broncos' best offensive player.When assessing the Broncos (4-6), whom the Steelers (7-2-1) visit this weekend , Tomlin started off not with Emmanuel Sanders or Case Keenum but with the former University of Colorado star he called "a great runner who is dangerous."On Friday, Lindsay said he appreciated the nod from Tomlin."It is an honor. But now I've got to go out and do it again," Lindsay told The Associated Press. "In his case, it sucks for him because now it's time for him to see what it's about."Welcome, Mike Tomlin, to Phillip Lindsay's told-you-so tour."I'm proud to be undrafted and to be able to do the things I've done because it's a slap in everybody's face," Lindsay said. "But you know at some point in time you've got to get past that and you have to go for other things that have that chip, something else has to always feed you."First, for me, it was not getting drafted, so I had to prove myself to get into the NFL. Now, I'm in the NFL. Now my whole thing is to show everybody that I'm the best rookie running back coming out and I didn't even get drafted. So, shame on them."Lindsay also uses the combine snub as his motivation."Oh yeah, it's disrespectful. But it fueled my fire and got me here to where I am today," Lindsay said.On opening weekend, Lindsay's 102 yards from scrimmage made him the third undrafted player 鈥?and first running back 鈥?in the common draft era (since 1967) to top 100 yards and score a touchdown in his NFL debut.With fellow rookie Royce Freeman, a third-round pick out of Oregon, injured, Lindsay made his first start in Week 8 at Kansas City and rushed for the most yards (95) in team history by a rookie in his starting debut.Lindsay is averaging 5.5 yards a carry and has rushed for 670 yards and five touchdowns, including two against the Chargers last week. He also has two dozen catches for 187 yards and a TD."I think you can stop wondering 11 games in," Tomlin said. "I think he's got a big enough body of work. He's a guy to be reckoned with. Inside and out, he's capable of making big runs."Lindsay has become so valuable on offense that the Broncos are using Devontae Booker to return kicks and River Cracraft to return punts even though Lindsay is the team's best player at both.What impresses Keenum is Lindsay's upward trajectory even as defensive coordinators have begun scheming to stop him specifically: "I think for him to keep doing that is big time.""Obviously, it's Week 12 and it's not a fluke," Broncos coach Vance Joseph said. "He's a really good player. He's a durable player and he makes plays every week."We're lucky to have him 鈥?very lucky."Several teams reached out to Lindsay and his agent after he went undrafted, but the Broncos had a built-in advantage. The first player from the Broncos Futures Football program for middle schoolers to sign an NFL contract, Lindsay starred at Denver's South High School before playing for the Buffaloes.Lindsay said he wanted to stay close to home 鈥?or, rather, at his parents' home."When you're a college free agent, you're not getting a lot of money," Lindsay said. "So, you go somewhere else you damn near don't have no money. But for me, I'm able to stay at home right now, save my money and be more comfortable. And it was just the best fit for me, a better fit for me all around."Follow Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: ://arniestapleton