The first quarter of the Steelers’ 2018 season was rough.

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Thankfully , the second quarter yielded a perfect record to top the 1-2-1 start. So as I am tasked to break out the red pen and evaluate the season’s second quarter, I no longer do it from the ledge.As I’ve stated all along, I’m not a football coach or a teacher, but I play one in blogs and podcasts. Each week of the 2018 exhibition and regular season, I’ve graded the efforts of the Black-and-gold via “the eye test”. Grading games is an extremely difficult and somewhat thankless task. While the coaches’ grades, of course, are what count the most, the media and fans can’t help but evaluate as well. So you, the reader, get to vote as well. You even get to grade the grader in the comments section.So let’s take a look at BTSC’s perceptions of the 2018 season’s second quarter:OffenseThe Steelers’ offense is ranked fourth in the league with 415.2 ypg and ninth with a 28.4 points per game (ppg) average through eight contests. In 2017, they scored at a rate of 26.4 ppg. After an inconsistent start, Randy Fichtner’s unit has resembled the juggernaut that they’ve promised to be. Ben Roethlisberger was the league’s passing leader through the first quarter (1,414 yards/353.5 yards per game), but his average has dropped 9 ypg. Despite that, he was a much better quarterback in the second quarter. He admittedly was not on the same page with everybody and now seems to be. By spreading the ball around to a myriad of guys (Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster , Ryan Switzer, Vance McDonald, Jesse James and James Conner) and no longer forcing it to AB, he has thrived. Ben’s offensive line wasn’t reminiscent of the high-caliber unit of past years in the first quarter, but now is playing like an elite squad. Injuries have hampered Marcus Gilbert, but Matt Feiler has filled in tremendously at RT. The remaining four of Ramon Foster, Dave DeCastro, Alejandro Villanueva and Maurkice Pouncey have been dominating oncoming defenders, protecting Ben (2 sacks allowed in the second quarter of 2018 and 11 overall) and opening gaping holes for James Conner. Mike Munchak’s guys are close to being the class of the league.Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY SportsLe’Veon Bell has been missed less and less with James Conner’s emergence as an elite back in the league with nine rushing TDs and another on a reception. No. 30’s 706 rushing yards on the ground ranks him second in the league and his 379 yards as a receiver puts him on track for a better output than Bell in 2017. His penchant for picking up the blitz no longer creates concern. Conner has done well, making Bell a likely backup upon his possible return.Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY SportsAntonio Brown is not having the receptions and yardage season that he’s accustomed to. But his nine receiving TDs leads the NFL and is only four behind his career high in 2014. Double-teaming AB has forced balls to go in other directions, mostly to JuJu Smith-Schuster. JuJu (13th in the league) leads the team with 53 catches for 672 yards versus Antonio’s 51 for 594 (T-14th). The disconnect between Ben and AB has lessened with No. 84 seemingly accepting that Ben can’t continue to force the ball into him. The deep threat that Martavis Bryant provided hasn’t yet been replicated yet, as Justin Hunter and James Washington haven’t seized the WR3 role. However, the rookie seems to be getting looks again.Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY SportsThe TE duo of Jesse James (336 yards on 21 catches) and Vance McDonald (346 yards on 26 catches) has been very solid. As a unit, they’ve got a combined 47 grabs on 61 targets and their yards-after-catch have been remarkable — a combined 368. Vanimal is ranked 25th in the league with 234, while Jesse registers in at 83rd with 134.Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty ImagesOverall Offense Grade: AThe offense has found their identity. AB is scoring touchdowns and Ben is no longer trying to appease him. Conner is playing at an elite level, behind an elite line. Vance and Jesse James take turns being valuable and JuJu is a joy joy.Offensive Valedictorian: James ConnerSteelers Film Room: James Conner proves he was never the problem James Conner didn't do much on the ground in Weeks 2 through 4 , and he was being blamed for the majority of it. Really? People thought Conner was the issue? He wasn't the issue -- one of the issues was play-calling. The Steelers ran far too many plays to the inside which didn't always suit Conner’s strengths, and now that they're getting him outside in space, he can use his balance and burst to do much more than just running between the tackles every play. The other issue was simply offensive-line play. Marcus Gilbert and David DeCastro each missing games was no help to Conner at all. The Steelers overall have been among the league’s lower half of run-blocking teams according to PFF, and it's clear to see. Conner was hit behind the line too many times over the past three weeks.Finally, with a fully healthy line for the first time since Week 1, James Conner found more success than he has at anytime this season, and you can tell he's a starting-caliber running back. This guy is 100% a starter. He has all the aspects you want in a RB. First, vision and burst, Exhibit A:Beautiful tuck inside by Conner on this play as he reads that hole opening up at the last second. If he doesn’t read that, it's a decent gain but nowhere near the run he gets. I love how once he gets to the second level you see that next-level burst from him. He absolutely can be a big- play threat, and that shows differentiation from Le’Veon Bell as a whole. Not everyone is born with vision, but Conner has it and it's only improved as the season has gone on. But where Conner has really improved is in the receiving game. He has 22 catches for 239 yards receiving. Compare that to last year when he could barely catch, but now he's motioning out wide and catching passes for first downs. His evolution from just a pure runner to a lean, receiving back has been a fun transition to watch as this season has progressed.The Steelers love to run plays like this with Le’Veon Bell out of the slot. It's a simple bunch-set with an inside trailing route as the two receivers on the right side are “screening” for Conner to take this quick catch and get the first down. The best part, aside from the easy catch Conner makes away from his body, is the extra yards he fights for at the end of the play. A high level of effort plus a high level of talent will get you places. But that's not even the best part of Conner’s game. By far , it's his balance through contact. The balance he shows is at an elite level, no matter how you slice it. He has some incredible strength and power to go with that strong center of gravity. It's not always easy to find players with balance like this. They ran this pitch-play with much success on Sunday. I don't necessarily like the play, but it gets Conner in space and allows him to take advantage of his incredible balance and burst. You can see it all on display on this particular play, and he just keeps powering through. Conner was truly impressive vs. the Falcons in Week 5. But there was a play combining all of his talents into one, and it was an absolute beauty to watch. This one might make top-5 RB plays of the year folks.Hello James Conner. He runs straight over people, cuts it up to get the best lane to the first down and then powers through others to get even more yardage. Backup RBs simply don't do things like this. I'm not saying James Conner will be a star, but he's absolutely a starting RB, and certainly isn't the problem with the Steelers’ running game.Part of it was how the Steelers fell down early in most of the games when Conner was ineffective but, in reality, Conner always grinded out as many yards as he could. He's never been, and never will be, the problem. This guy is not only a great story, but a great football player too.