The Pittsburgh Steelers have suddenly become one of the more impressive teams in the AFC. They currently have a 6-2 record, lead the AFC North, and they would hold the three-seed if the playoffs began today. Justin Fields was the starting quarterback to start the year as he led Pittsburgh to a 4-2 record through six starts, but Russell Wilson has been able to raise the offense to another level. Through Wilson's two starts, the offense looks more efficient than ever, and they look like a team that can compete in the postseason.
Pittsburgh has been a complete team throughout their last two games. They have caused five turnovers as a defense, while also continuously making impact plays on special teams. They are hard to beat for any team when they are clicking in all three phases of the game. Baltimore Ravens beat-writer Jeff Zrebiec was recently asked in a piece for The Athletic how he feels about the outcome of the AFC North after what he has seen so far in the 2024 season.
"If Wilson continues to play like this, the Steelers have to be considered the favorites to win the division," Zrebiec wrote. "We know they have a good defense that will create turnovers in key spots. Pittsburgh’s special teams unit is making game-changing plays every week. If you complement that with an offense that can run the football and create chunk plays with Wilson’s arm, they’d be the most balanced and dangerous team in the AFC North."
This is high-praise considering it is coming from a beat-writer for the most dominant offense in the AFC. Lamar Jackson has won two MVP Awards for the Ravens and Derrick Henry is on pace for a 2,000-yard season, but Pittsburgh is believed to be more dangerous. Zrebiec likely has the results of some of Baltimore's recent games against Pittsburgh stuck in his memory, as the Steelers are 7-1 against the Ravens since the start of the 2020 season.
Outside of Baltimore and Pittsburgh, the rest of the AFC North hasn't played up to their expectations during the 2024 season. The Cleveland Browns are looking like they have no chance of making the postseason as they have a 2-7 record through nine weeks. The Cincinnati Bengals are starting to come together, but they had a rough start and sit at 4-5. Zrebiec spoke about how all the weaknesses from the three other teams play into the Steelers' favor.
"The Ravens’ defense continues to be in a bad way, and their special teams haven’t been good either," Zrebiec said. "The Bengals’ defense is a problem, and the Eagles game reinforced that. That was a nice win for the Browns, and they’ll be far more competent with Jameis Winston under center, but they’ve dug themselves too big of a hole. That’s why I think what we saw from the Steelers’ offense, albeit against a bad Giants team, was the biggest takeaway from a divisional perspective."
Pittsburgh clearly has the best defense out of the four teams in the division, and they also have the best special teams group. As Wilson continues to ingratiate himself into the offense, the group should only get better with each passing week. Pittsburgh has been second-fiddle to Baltimore in the AFC North in recent years, but it looks like the tides may be changing.
Steelers Will Have A Lot To Prove In The Second Half Of The Season
As Pittsburgh comes off of their bye week, they will be taking on one of the toughest schedules in the NFL. They will be playing all six of their divisional matchups along with games against the Washington Commanders, Kansas City Chiefs, and Philadelphia Eagles. Not a single game in the second half of the year is going to be easy for Pittsburgh, but they have shown they have the team that is necessary to take on this gauntlet.
