Hey Steelers Fans! Welcome to Victory Monday.
The Kickoff
Don’t look now but the Black and Gold have won three straight games and remain tied atop the AFC North. They have a crucial home date with the rival Browns on Sunday afternoon. Both teams are 5-2 yet the Clevelanders hold the tie-breaker as they have a win in hand on the Steelers. How did Pittsburgh get here? Well, here are my thoughts on yesterday’s 16-10 win over the New Orleans Saints.
Offense
-Does there have to be a division of labor between Jaylen Warren (18 CAR 101 yards, 3 REC 36 yards) and Rico Dowdle (9 CAR 41 yards, 6 REC 45 yards)? Yes, there should be but there’s a bigger question. Why does Mike McCarthy seem to replace Warren at the very moment he seems to be getting hot? Dowdle ran well yesterday. Easily his best performance as he displayed the type of burst and speed that was expected of him. But should he be getting 15 touches? It’s a fair and difficult question moving forward.
-I hope someone asks Mike McCarthy at his presser about being in the shotgun so much. It just doesn’t make sense to me given that the offense has performed better when Aaron Rodgers (19/30 212 yards TD) is under center.
-Rodgers and McCarthy better get used to all of the man coverage because it’s coming. Defenses know that the Steelers’ OL isn’t capable of prolonged protection so if Rodgers doesn’t get the ball out quickly he’s in trouble.
-Stop force-feeding the ball to D.K. Metcalf. Furthermore, if you are going to do that then give him catchable balls.
-Zach Frazier is destroying people right now especially in the run game. He’s headed for a Pro Bowl nod in my opinion.
-Troy Fautanu is not perfect and he’s far from a finished product. He got beat a few teams yesterday and that happens. The major question here is wheterh he learned from it.
Defense
-Easily the best game for Payton Wilson and Patrick Queen. Both tackled better and were playing like their hair was on fire.
-Kudos to Domata Peko the team’s defensive line coach. He’s without Sebastian Joseph-Day and Derrick Harmon right now yet his defensive line completely shut down the Saints’ running game. Rookies Kevin Jobity and Gabe Rubio both played well.
-Jalen Ramsey has been an extremely important player for this defense against the run and when coming off the edge as a blitzer. I’m not sure however how much he can cover in man-to-man anymore though. On fourth and goal he had no chance on the Saints’ TD throw and there were a couple of other moments where receivers were just to quick for him.
-After seven games, I’m still not sure what to make of Patrick Graham’s defense. The unit is giving up just 17 points per game over the last three weeks and the run defense has been terrific. The inconsistency in the pass rush is troubling especially with interior pressure and I’m still not convinced about the secondary.
-Keannu Benton is like an ascending rocket right now. His play just keeps getting better and better.
-Alex Highsmith just isn’t getting to the quarterback enough.
-Jamel Dean is a better open-field tackler than I thought he was.
Special Teams
-Danny Crossman’s kick coverage unit is too inconsistent. I’m still surprised they haven’t given up a TD at this point.
-Kaden Wetjen made a very important play yesterday. He could have easily let a punt bounce because of all the traffic around him on the sidelines but he didn’t. He caught it and was able to advance the ball about 15 yards. That was crucial in a game where field position was paramount.
Officating
-The Steelers were unlucky on two fumbles near the goal line and should have been rewarded on a third. T.J. Watt knocked the ball from Tyler Shough’s hands on a sack but the review convinced the officials that Shough’s knee was down. The ball sure looked like it was moving to me.
-Kudos to Darnell Washington for fighting off DB Kool-Aid McKinstry for the Steelers’ only TD of the game. My question is why wasn’t a defensive holding or pass interference flag thrown? McKinstry was literally bear hugging Washington the whole play. I realize he’s a big man but the rules don’t – or shouldn’t – change based on a player’s size.
-Brandon Smith’s unsportsmanlike penalty was weak. If anything, it should have been offsetting penalties or no call at all.
Strategy
-The Steelers kicked a field goal with 1:04 to play in the game. The Saints were out of timeouts. Despite the field goal being good, the Saints were offsides giving McCarthy a choice. Take the points and a two-score lead or take the points off the board and knee twice for the win. I’m of the opinion that you do exactly what Big Mike did. If you can’t complete two snaps then you don’t deserve to win. This was a far better option than putting your inconsistent kick coverage team out there and then forcing your defense to play more snaps.
Up Next: A 1pmET home date with the Browns.
