Pittsburgh Steelers Week 2 Preview: Taking on the Champs

In the Pittsburgh Steelers opener at Acrisure Stadium, Mike McCarthy made his head coaching debut in his first game with the Black and Gold and it was a winning effort, 20-13 defeating the Atlanta Falcons. As his tenure begins in the city where he was born and raised, McCarthy becomes only the fourth head coach hired by the Steelers in the last 57 years.

McCarthy has some huge shoes to fill. All three past head coaches left their role as head coach in Pittsburgh with winning records and filled Acrisure Stadium with six Super Bowl Lombardi Trophies. In addition, Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin also reached the Super Bowl twice more only to lose. So, in 57 years, the Pittsburgh Steelers have reached the Super Bowl eight times. 

Now it remains to be seen if McCarthy can get his new team to the promised land and if he does, how many seasons will it take to get there? Around NFL circles and even in Pittsburgh reporters were not impressed with the win over Atlanta. But this happens seemingly EVERY year. It doesn’t help that the Steelers are caught in a playoff victory drought, but still, this team is VERY talented.

Facing Atlanta, it was hardly an offensive explosion, but the defense was on fire and T.J. Watt showed he has plenty of gas left in the tank with a sack, plenty of tackles, and a pick six that was a fantastic effort. One thing Steelers fans should keep in mind is that this is only one game. There are a ton of new faces on the team, both rookies and veterans, and they all need to be comfortable in their new system.

No one should have expected the team to be on cylinders in their first official game of the season. Over time, if the 53 men on the roster reach their full potential, this team will be a serious threat. Michael Pittman Jr. and Rico Dowdle are new to the offense. Both had subpar games but give it time. This weekend’s opponent are the defending AFC champion Patriots who have been made 4 ½ point favorites hosting Pittsburgh on their turf.

The Steelers will have a slight advantage due to injuries to star receiver A.J. Brown who suffered an ankle injury in the season opener and is said to be out six weeks. Running back TreVeyon Henderson is questionable. So is center Ben Brown. The Steelers on the other hand came away from the Atlanta victory essentially unscathed. In the history of these two teams playing each other, New England leads the series 19-17 with 31 of those games coming in the regular season. But when it comes to the postseason the Patriots OWN the Steelers winning four of five games.

Last season in their only meeting the Steelers prevailed 21-14. Before that, Pittsburgh had lost the last three meetings in a row. Two of those games came in the ‘Burgh. Since 2010, New England has won nine of 12 games played. That included a five-game losing streak for the Steelers and then the three-game skid just mentioned. The Steelers won five in a row between 1989 and 1995 and three straight from 1979 to 1982. The very first meeting took place on October 22, 1972, the year of the “Immaculate Reception” and it took place at Three Rivers Stadium when the Steelers won 33-3. 

The most points ever scored by a Steelers team were 41 in a victory on December 16, 1995, as the defense surrendered 27 points that day. Pittsburgh has only been shut out by New England once in 1986 as the Steelers got spanked 34-0. In consecutive years, the Steelers were held to just three points on two separate games. New England on the other hand defeated Pittsburgh 55-31 on November 3, 2013, and 41-27 in the playoffs of 2005. The Steelers have never shut out the Patriots but have held them to just a field goal on two occasions. 

Looking back at the Steelers 20-13 win over Atlanta, several things to consider when reviewing the offensive performance.

• DK Metcalf was a massive disappointment. 10 times Aaron Rodgers threw it to him, and he ended up with just four receptions. There was one dropped pass he should have had but his two offensive interference penalties were his downfall. The first one he pushed off. Ok, it happens. Then he did it again much to the angst of Steelers fans everywhere. Simply because it was so blatant and there is no excuse for that. The difference in the score could have been much different if he caught the ball better and didn’t commit those penalties.
• Roman Wilson may have finally arrived. Despite a potential touchdown pass dropped he looked much better than he ever has in his young career with the Steelers. He had three catches on six attempts last Sunday and with an 8.7 per catch average, that’s nearly a first down each time. 
• Let’s talk about Darnell Washington. Two receptions one for 15 yards which resulted in a stiff arm that some are calling one of the best in years and certainly it might finish the season as the best of the year. Check it out on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/5wWPugNZdLs. Aaron Rodgers needs to give this monster tight end more opportunities. At least five passes at a minimum. When this guy catches the ball and starts running downfield, he’s like trying to tackle a freight train.
• It takes time for new faces to get comfortable in a system. Rico Dowdle is coming off three straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons. In game one with the Steelers, he ran the ball eight times but gained just 15 yards. Steelers fans should be confident that he will perform much better going forward given his track record. His partner in crime, Jaylen Warren ran much better averaging 4.6 yards per carry. This duo will become a dangerous combination. Patience is the key here.
• The Steelers offensive line held up well even though Aaron Rodgers got sacked twice and while his numbers weren’t great, his technique was pretty much well…Aaron Rodgers. Just as it did last year, his experience in the league showed. Once everyone on offense is on the same page, this offense will click no matter what the skeptics believe.
• Aaron Rodgers has a slew of weapons to choose from, Metcalf, Pittman, Dowdle, Warren, Pat Freiermuth, Wilson, Washington, and exciting rookie Germie Bernard didn’t even play last week. The kid has lots of potential. 
• As for the Steelers’ defense with a new defensive coordinator in place who is Patrick Graham, they performed well facing the Falcons offense. It helped that Atlanta has QB issues with Cooper Rush forced into action. He threw two interceptions and got sacked four times as well as missing 10 passes. Joey Porter reportedly has an aching back and an equally injured ego as he continues his battle with the front office on a new contract.
• So Porter was missing from the secondary but newly signed Jaquan Brisker and another new face in Jamel Dean both contributed in a big way. Brisker made six tackles four which were solo. Dean added five more with three solos. The defensive star of the day was T.J. Watt. Four solo tackles, two sacks, and a pick six. Three tackles for a loss, one pass defended and two quarterback hits. It doesn’t get any better than that. Who said Watt is old?
• The kick return game was solid, especially on kickoffs where between rookies Eli Heidenreich and Kaden Wetjen they returned three kickoffs for a 24.7 return average.
• Finally, there is the punting game. Cameron Johnston has returned to the Steelers having lost his job previously to Corliss Waitman. This summer Johnston won the job and Waitman is now in San Francisco where he has punted twice for an average of 47.0 yard per boot. Johnston? Four kicks for an average of 48.5 yards per attempts with two inside the 20-yard line and a long kick of 55 yards. I think we know why Mike McCarthy awarded the job to Johnston.

Now for the Steelers/Patriots preview.

When the Steelers have the ball

The Steelers running game might be just warming up. They’ve had only one game to get it going. It will begin to click and with the Patriots losing a close Super Bowl rematch to Seattle on opening night, their defense allowed 97 yards rushing. Jadarian Price of the Seahawks carved up their defense for 52 yards on just 10 carries. I believe the Steelers have better runners. While the Pats’ defense allowed just 188 yards passing, I don’t believe Aaron Rodgers has made full use of his weapons. 

I see Pittsburgh trying to establish a running game but using more of a short-range passing attack first before going long downfield.

When the Patriots have the ball

Drake Maye had a forgettable game in the opener. Three interceptions all in the fourth quarter with the final one a nail in the coffin game over pick. His passer rating was just 54.9, and he was sacked three times. Expect the Steelers defense to come after him…big time. Shamondre Stevenson ran the ball 18 times but could only manage a 2.8 yards per carry mark. Without A.J. Brown at his disposal, the Steelers pressure should be amped up. Maye might be in for a long day.

Intangibles

Naturally there have been comparisons already to the differences between Mike Tomlin and Mike McCarthy. Just reflecting on his first regular season game as head coach of the Steelers I noticed a few little things that I like. McCarthy took more chances. He gave us a trick play and a fake field goal attempt albeit a failure. But it’s the attitude that is the difference. It’s already obvious that McCarthy is going to be far less conservative than was Tomlin. The trust is McCarthy versus the trust Steelers Nation had in Tomlin will get greater as this team wins games they may have normally lost under a Tomlin led team. 

New England may have the home field advantage but these days that’s not such an advantage as it used to be. Without A.J. Brown and Drake Maye, who looked like a rookie in week one, McCarthy I believe has the smarts to come up with a great game plan

Prediction

I like the Steelers on the road to go to 2-0.