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NFL.com reports Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall carried the ball 16 times for 48 yards and a touchdown Saturday, Aug. 29. He did not show any hesitation hitting holes.

The Skinny: The NFL.com report was being a little too nice to Mendenhall on this one.  Mendenhall came to life in the second quarter, but was far from what a lot of Steelers fans hoped he would be. On the Steelers opening drive, Mendenhall was tackled in the backfield, fumbling the ball and turning it over to the Bills.  On the Steelers second drive, the first time Mendenhall broke through the line of scrimmage, he stutter stepped because it looked like he was afraid of getting hit. Could it be Mendenhall was afraid of re-injuring his shoulder, or that he did not have confidence in the offensive line? Early in the game, he played timid. He did play much better in the second quarter, when he scored his first touchdown of the preseason, when the Steelers scored just before half time. The hole that the offensive line opened up for him, I could have ran a touchdown through.

For more featured analysis from Nick Signorelli be sure to log-on to the Bleacher Report.

He can be reached at nsignorelli@allaccessfootball.com

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