Hey Steelers Fans. Welcome to Victory Tuesday.
The Kickoff
It was a very nerve-racking 7-3 lead at halftime for the Pittsburgh Steelers last night. The defense was solid but the offense struggled until the final drive of the half. Then came the second half. The Steelers rolled to three straight touchdowns on three possessions to take a 28-7 lead over the Miami Dolphins. Ultimately, the Steelers would defeat the fish 28-15 after giving up a couple of late touchdowns to Darren Waller. Here are some of my early thoughts on last night’s win.
That Penalty
The taunting call against Jordyn Brooks in the third quarter which gave the Steelers a first down was a poor call. Players do that all the time and to call it there was bush league in my opinion. That said, it SHOULD be called more often. If you want to hit the guy and then stand there and flex? Fine, go ahead. But when you deliberately stand over the guy? I got a problem with that. The behavior is now commonplace in youth sports and it does not but lead to confrontations.
MVP?
Every time I watch this offense I think to myself, “Where would we be without Kenneth Gainwell?” It’s not that Gainwell is the best player on the offense but the fact that he does so much for the offense is difficult to compare. He had 20 touches on offense last night running 13 times for 80 yards and catching seven passes for 46 yards. If he doesn’t move the sticks with each touch then in most cases he gets pretty damn close to it. I’m not sure how anyone could vote against him right now in terms of being the team’s MVP – on offense at least.
Rodgers in ’26?
It’s hard to argue with what Aaron Rodgers did last night. 23/27 224 yards and two scores is a good night at the office. He was sacked three times and he’d probably be the first to tell you that he needed to get the ball out sooner. He seemed to truly enjoy the moment last night and his play the last two weeks has people wondering if he won’t attempt to be back in 2026. Given that the incoming QB class isn’t what many believed it would be, that possibility has grown in my opinion.
Kudos to the Defense
Without T.J. Watt and without Derrick Harmon the Steelers were able to largely contain the Miami running game. I’ll be honest; some of that I put on the Dolphins. They were getting nice chunks but kept going back to the pass which worked in our favor nearly every time. Patrick Queen led the team in tackles while Jalen Ramsey, Payton Wilson and Esezi Otomewo collected sacks. If I’m a Dolphins’ fan I think I’ve seen enough of Tua Tagovailoa. What a dreadful performance that was and don’t be fooled by the garbage stats in the fourth quarter.
Hall of Honor
Joey Porter, Maurkice Pouncey and Ben Roethlisberger were inducted into the Steelers Hall of Fame this weekend. All are very deserving… One of the best things about these moments is when the teammates and older players show up. Casey Hampton, James Farrior and David DeCastro were just a few among many.
Random Reads
I’ll go back and watch the all-22 but I thought Dylan Cook did a very nice job in his first start at left tackle. I was stunned at how often they left him one on one… That D.K. Metcalf touchdown was ‘big boy’ football. He was tossing defenders like rag dolls… Is there anyone more exciting to watch right now than Darnell Washington? You can feel the electricity in the building the minute he gets the ball… Love the early aggressiveness from Mike Tomlin. I think our version of the ‘tush push’ needs some work but it was hard to argue with the results last night… I feel bad for Roman Wilson in this sense; the Steelers needed boundary wide receivers in the draft yet still drafted him. He’s almost exclusively a slot guy. That said, not being able to get a helmet at this point in the season is troubling… The Steelers now face a short week and a short trip to Detroit. With Nick Herbig banged up the team is very short on OLBs… The Lions are in a must-win situation so I expect another difficult one.
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