The Pittsburgh Steelers are making plenty of noise
When one thinks of Super Bowl contenders, teams such as the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens come to mind, at least among AFC squads. It's not surprising why. Analysts favor these teams. The media also continues to shine the spotlight on stars such as Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Travis Kelce. Still, no matter how small, there's always a possibility that the AFC crown ends up with a team that doesn't have shades of red or purple on their uniforms. What if all the analysts and the majority of football fans are proven wrong this season? Could there be a conference dark horse that ends up shocking the NFL by booking a ticket to the Big Game? Right now, a growing case could be made for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A probable reason why the Steelers are considered underdogs is their schedule. They do hold a 7-2 record, which interestingly puts them ahead of the Ravens in the AFC North at present. However, plenty of those wins have been against struggling foes. Specifically, the only above-.500 teams they've beaten so far are the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Chargers. Those two games also happened during the first few weeks of the season, a time when no one had any idea that the Falcons and Chargers would look like playoff squads.
However, the Steelers' Week 10 win over the Washington Commanders was a statement-maker. It was a message to the doubters, a show of what Pittsburgh could do against a foe that boasts one of the league's top offenses. If there was a game that revealed glimpses of Super Bowl contention, it was last Sunday's.
It all starts with Russell Wilson
Against the Commanders, Russell Wilson played in a way that would make Seattle Seahawks fans smile with nostalgia. The QB threw for 195 yards and three touchdowns on 7.0 yards per pass.
His late-game heroics, in particular, showed the poise of a veteran who's riddled with experience. Wilson's third touchdown was the game-winner to the entire outing. With less than two and a half minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Steelers were down by six points and had a 3rd-and-9 at the Washington 32. Following the snap, Williams was hurried by the defense into immediately throwing the ball. That small amount of time he had was enough, regardless. Wilson found newcomer Mike Williams, who ran ahead of his defender for a TD catch.
On top of that, Wilson and the Steelers sealed the deal by taking advantage of Commanders rookie Johnny Newton's inexperience. With 1:02 remaining, Pittsburgh clung to a one-point lead while facing a 4th-and-1. They opted to try and get the Washington defense to jump offsides, which worked courtesy of Newton falling for the trick. The defensive tackle was called for a neutral zone infraction, giving the Steelers a first down.
In a team with a QB room that includes Justin Fields, Mike Tomlin made the bold decision of starting Russell Wilson back in Week 7. It has paid dividends so far, with Wilson already tallying 737 passing yards and seven touchdowns (six passing) in three victories. His first two games were against bottom-of-the-barrell teams, but spearheading a come-from-behind win against a Commanders squad that averages 377 yards per game is no easy task.
The Steelers will still rely primarily on the run to push the ball. If Wilson continues playing at this level though, then an unpredictable, dual-threat offense may just be what's in store week after week.
The Steelers defense can compete against the best
Entering Week 10's game, the Commanders were averaging 163.9 rushing yards per game (third-best in the league at that time). Their balanced attack on the ground had already resulted in several running backs — as well as Jayden Daniels — tallying multiple touchdowns to their names. However, Pittsburgh was able to severely limit their rushing yardage last Sunday. The Commanders put up just 60 yards on 2.7 yards per carry. Their longest run went for just 10 yards. Daniels was also held to his lowest rushing output of the season, a mere five yards in three carries.
Of course, this doesn't take away the fact that the Steelers weren't able to protect the fort in the red zone. The Commanders did score three rushing touchdowns, all of which were from near the endzone. In a different set of lenses, however, it might be viewed as an isolated case, as Pittsburgh this season holds opponents to just a 44.4% scoring percentage in the red zone — fourth-best in the entire NFL.
Overall, the Steelers have one of the best run defenses, allowing foes just 87.1 rushing yards per game. This can be largely attributed to inside linebackers Patrick Queen, Elandon Roberts and rookie Payton Wilson, who have tallied a combined 127 tackles to date. There's still room to improve, of course. There have been some games where opponents had their way with carries, but regardless, Week 10 showed that the run coverage is capable of going against high-caliber offenses.
What about pass defense? The first player that comes to mind is T.J. Watt, who already has 6.5 sacks and 33 tackles (10 tackles for loss). Led by the standout EDGE, the Steelers have the seventh-best pass rush win rate in the entire league. Last Sunday, Jayden Daniels was sacked thrice, finishing with just a 68.5% passer rating and zero passing TDs.
While this hasn't solved the concerning amount of yardage that the Steelers allow through the air, another positive takeaway is that the team already has 10 interceptions and has allowed just eight passing touchdowns so far this season. There's the secondary to thank for that.
There are dents in the armor to fix, but the Steelers are competing. As the tedious part of their schedule commences on Sunday with a rivalry game against the Ravens, Pittsburgh has plenty of momentum on their side. They've shown flashes of elite play. All they have to do is to remain consistent for a playoff spot, or even better, a Super Bowl appearance.
