We made it!!! After a long and oftentimes grueling offseason, week one is here! The Pittsburgh Steelers host the Atlanta Falcons in the season opener and here’s everything you need to know about the game! Once again the Three-Point Stance is presented by Gryffin the King!!!
What: Atlanta Falcons 0-0 at Pittsburgh Steelers
Where: Acrisure Stadium Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
When: Sunday September 13th, 2026 1pmET
Weather: Partly Sunny and 80 degrees at kickoff
Surface: Natural Grass
Wagering Information: Steelers -3.5 O/U 42.5
Last Week: N/A
TV: FOX Joe Davis (play-by-play), Greg Olsen (analysis), Pam Oliver (field reporter)
TV Coverage in Your Area (courtesy 506sports.com): Coverage for us in RED.
Radio: Steelers Audio Network Rob King (play-by-play), Max Starks (analysis), Missi Matthews (field reporter)
Head Official: Brad Rogers. Now in his eighth season as a head official, Rogers is a college professor in his “real life.” He last officiated a Steelers’ game in 2025. That was a 25-10 loss in Los Angeles to the Chargers. 12 penalties were called that day. His crew averages over one more flag per game on the away team versus the home team. He often faces scrutiny by fans for not knowing the rulebook as well as he should. Missed ‘illegal formations’ were common with his crew.
Game Status (courtesy steelers.com) PIT: No. 24 CB Joey Porter Jr. (Back) – Questionable ATL: No. 1 QB Tua Tagovailoa (Oblique) – Out
No. 9 QB Michael Penix Jr. (Knee) – Out, No. 33 CB Billy Bowman Jr. (Achilles) – Out, No. 55 DE Za’ Darius Smith (Shoulder) – Questionable
No. 71 OT Cameron Williams (Ankle) – Out
Injury Notes: Would it shock me if JPJ plays? No, but I just haven’t seen anything to make me think he will. For the Falcons, obviously Cooper Rush gets the start with Penix and Tua both out.
2025 FINAL NFL Ranks:
Total Offense: PIT 25th, ATL 14th
Passing Offense: PIT 22nd, ATL 19th
Rushing Offense: PIT 26th, ATL 8th
Total Defense: PIT 26th, ATL 15th
Passing Defense: PIT 29th, ATL 13th
Rushing Defense: PIT 13th, ATL 24th
AFC North Standings:
Baltimore 0-0
Cincinnati 0-0
Cleveland 0-0
Pittsburgh 0-0
This Week in the AFC North: Tampa Bay at Cincinnati 1pmET, Cleveland at Jacksonville 1pmET, Baltimore at Indianapolis 1pmET
What You Need to Know: Both coaches – Kevin Stefanski and Mike McCarthy – begin their tenures with new teams… The Steelers have recorded 22 straight seasons with a record of .500 or better… Pittsburgh is 49-39-5 all-time in season opening games… When opening at home the Steelers are 31-19-3… They have opened twice before against Atlanta winning both times… The Steelers are 52-38-3 all-time in home openers.
The McCarthy Minute: Coach McCarthy enters his first season with the Steelers with an all-time record of 174-112-2 (.608)… This puts him 15th overall in all-time wins… He has defeated every team in the NFL with the exception of the Packers… He is 11-6 in season opening games as a head coach.
Atlanta Falcons Names to Know: RB Bijan Robinson, WR Drake London, QB Cooper Rush, LB Christian Harris, CB Avieon Terrell, CB A.J. Terrell,Jr, WR Jahan Dotson, TE Kyle Pitts, Sr, PK Nick Folk,
What’s at Stake: A good start to the season.
All-Time Series: Steelers Lead 16-2-1 and are 7-0-1 all-time in Pittsburgh
Last Meeting: In Atlanta 2024. Steelers 18 Falcons 10
Steelers Regular Season Game Highs vs ATL:
PASSING: 473 Tommy Maddox 11/10/2002
RUSHING: 141 Franco Harris 10/28/1974
RECEIVING: 253 Plaxico Burress 11/10/2002
SACKS: 3.0 T.J. Watt 10/07/2018
INTERCEPTIONS: 2 Larry Griffin 10/04/1987, Rod Woodson 09/27/1993
Check out the latest SCB Steelers Podcast presented by DEK Roofing Inc for more on the Steelers.
Three Things We Need to See for a Steelers’ Victory:
–Explosive Plays. The Steelers added Michael Pittman, Jr and Germie Bernard to their receiving corps but neither of these guys are known for taking it to the house after a catch. Where can the offense find explosive plays? Will it be through the running game? Screen passes? Or deep shots? To me, it’s likely the latter. Regardless, the Steelers cannot always rely on 14-play drives. They need to be able to show defenses they can strike quickly.
–Trench Domination. The front office has invested significantly in both their offensive and defensive lines. At some point, this investment has to pay off. The young offensive line needs to gel and needs to get off the ball. I can handle some failures in pass protection but what drives me nuts is not getting off the ball in the running game. Defensively, the line enters with as much solid depth as it has had in a long time. That doesn’t mean anything however if the guys don’t produce. Keeanu Benton has to be better against the run for example.
–No Excuses. If the Steeler should not play well in this game and I’m specifically talking about the group that saw ZERO action in the preseason, then I don’t want to hear a damn thing about “rust.” I don’t want to hear “the timing was off” and I don’t want to hear “communication was a problem.” Mike McCarthy made the decision to keep the majority of these guys out of preseason action. OK, that’s fine, but there shouldn’t be any excuses if the play isn’t up to snuff.
The ‘X’ Factor: Each week I will select a player from each team who I believe will need to play above and beyond in order for his team to win.
X-Factor Steelers: Troy Fautanu. Last year we saw the former first rounder really improve as the season wore on while he played right tackle. Now he’s on the left side. With so much concern over Dyland Cook and/or rookie Max Iheanachor on the right, Fautanu needs to give Aaron Rodgers the confidence that he’s the man for the job on the Left.
X-Factor Falcons: Kyle Pitts, Sr. With Cooper Rush starting, he will need a security blanket and Pitts has to be that guy. The Steelers will likely load the box in an effort to slow down Bijan and Brian Robinson while daring Rush to beat them. We know the history of the Steelers’ defense when it comes to covering tight ends so Pitts has to be the man for Rush and his offense.
Prediction: In his first game as a Steeler last year in New York Aaron Rodgers threw four touchdown passes. Now, in his final season, he opens at home against a Falcons’ defense that isn’t as good on paper as that NYJ defense was. What was crazy about last year’s opener is that it took a 61-yard FG from Chris Boswell to win. I do not expect it to be as close this time but it will be a struggle as the Steelers’ offensive line is still finding its’ way.
Steelers 20 Falcons 13
Season Prediction Record: 0-0
