Steelers' Germie Bernard Gets Strong Warning From Ben Roethlisberger

The Pittsburgh Steelers may have finally found the future of their wide receiver room. Germie Bernard had the best game of his young career in Week 5, hauling in six catches for 80 yards. It's evident that Aaron Rodgers is starting to take a liking to the young pass-catcher. The opportunities will continue to become more apparent for the second-rounder, as the roster is slammed with injuries throughout the positional group. If the University of Alabama product can stay on the right track, a lot of folks around the NFL might be talking about him come the end of the year.

The crucial next step for the Steelers rookie will be to keep going at it at 100%. The first-year wall some players hit can be serious. He needs to continue to study film and get better as the season progresses. This is what will earn the trust of Rodgers even more, leading to targets each and every week. Pittsburgh may have found a legitimate playmaker back in April.

With any young contributor comes some headaches as well. Now that Bernard is expected to get on the field more often, some of his potential flaws will begin to come out. There have already been a couple of instances when he could not hang onto the football at first contact. This can lead to some problems developing if he does not get it corrected.

This was made very clear by Steelers' legendary quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. On Tuesday's episode of Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger, the future Hall of Fame signal-caller went into a ton of detail about Pittsburgh's wide receiving corps. The two-time Super Bowl champion has been impressed with Bernard; however, he noted that he won't get away with one issue for much longer.

"I like Bernard a lot, and I think he's doing some really good things. I think Aaron likes him," Roethlisberger said. "But that young man needs to catch the ball the first time because at some point  — he catches it the third time. He does this, and I'm like, 'Man, you got to be careful because balls get tipped up in the air.' That's how they come incomplete. Just got to secure it the first time."

What Roethlisberger is referring to is a wideout's ability to haul in a pass right when it hits their fingertips. If the pigskin pops out of the hands of the intended target, or is simply bobbled, bad things can come soon after. Bernard has been impressive, and should continue to show what he is capable of, but there are things that need to be honed in on. Catching the ball without any potential disaster occurring is important at the professional level.

A former quarterback would be the person to notice this kind of error from a rookie. Roethlisberger has certainly had some balls picked off in his day because a pass-catcher was unable to haul in a perfectly thrown ball. The last thing the Steelers want is Bernard continuing to struggle with this. It could lead to a turnover, and Rodgers might not be so forgiving.

Pittsburgh is starting to see what it has in the rookie. He will be on the playing surface a lot more in the coming games because of injuries to his teammates. The key won't just be producing, but staying away from hurting the offense in the process. Receivers are paid to catch the football, and that's exactly what Roethlisberger wants to see Bernard do more effectively.

Steelers Have A Golden Opportunity With Bernard

While the health of the pass-catching group is not very promising for Pittsburgh currently, Bernard is healthy. This is the perfect time to see if he is able to handle a full workload. Behind DK Metcalf, the first-year player is going to be the go-to guy potentially. The next couple of contests could determine if he has the ability to blossom into a star in the NFL. He just has to make sure that he is focusing on not making any devastating mistakes.