The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the New York Giants 26-18 heading into the bye week with a 4-2 record and sole ownership of the lead in the AFC North.
- That’s good. But the 8-point margin of victory is a little misleading.
The game shouldn’t have been that close, yet it was. While some of the reasons for the closeness are cause for concern, the key takeaway is the simple one: The Steelers won a game that they were “supposed” to win.
T.J. Watt strip sacks Daniel Jones. Photo Credit: Chaz Palla, Tribune-Review
Steelers Offense: Unleashed but Unfulfilled…
For the Steelers offense, the game against the Giants offered case study in the whole being less than the sum of its parts. Just look at the numbers.
- Najee Harris ran for 114 yards on 19 carries including 4 runs of over 10 yards
- Russell Wilson went just under 300 yards passing, no interceptions and a touchdown
- Wilson completed at least four of his “moon balls” sustaining the long ball’s return
- Jaylen Warren averaged over 5 yards a carry, looking like himself
- The Steelers top three pass catchers were, don’t look now, wide receivers
If I’d have told you ahead of time that the Steelers offense would fire on so many cylinders, you’d have thought this was a blow out.
Russell Wilson hands off to Najee Harris. Photo Credit: Steelers.com
Yet with 0:42 seconds left, Daniel Jones had led his team to the Steelers 35 with a chance to tie the game. While that is certainly not how you want to end a game to a 2-5 team, there’s no reason to overreact.
- The Steelers offense enters the bye week on an upward trajectory.
Poor performance in the Red Zone notwithstanding this was easily their most dynamic offensive performance of the year. The Steelers did have two touchdowns negated, one by a penalty and another by instant replay – showing that at least they’re capable of getting into the end zone, even if execution lacks.
Beyond the Red Zone issues the Steelers offensive line did struggle against the Giants pass rush. That’s not surprising – rushing the passer is one of the few things that the Giants do well, and the Steelers offensive line won some battles and lost others but on balance, they held their own.
Defense Dominates Buckles and then Delivers
The worst thing you can do when playing a struggling team is to let them reach a place where they start to feel that they can win. After a first half featuring a 9-9 field goal kicking derby between Chris Boswell and Greg Joseph, the Steelers were in the process of letting the Giants do just that.
After taking the opening kick off the Giants had advanced to the Steelers 31, largely on the strength of Tyrone Tracy’s rushing. What followed was perhaps Pittsburgh best 3-play defensive series thus far this season:
- On first down DeShon Elliott stoned Tracy for no gain.
- On second down T.J. Watt dropped Daniel Jones for a 7-yard loss.
- On third down Alex Highsmith took his turn and sacked Jones costing New York 3 more.
Yet, this was hardly a straight A night for the Steelers defense. Tyrone Tracy burned the middle of Steelers defense several other times including a 45 yard touchdown several other double digit runs.
But even then the Steelers defense rebounded quickly, with Alex Highsmith breaking up a 2 point conversion attempt literally before it even started.
The Watt Factor
During the second half, there were at least 4 times when the Steelers could have and should have put the game away.
1. Calvin Austin’s electrifying 73 yard punt return for a touchdown
2. Russell Wilson’s picture perfect moon 29 yard “moon pass” to Calvin Austin for a touchdown
3. The Steelers mid 4th quarter possession when they settled for 3
4. The ensuring Giants possession when the Steelers secondary 3 straight incompletions to force a field goal
At that point, just over 5 minutes remained and all the Steelers had to do was kill the clock. Najee Harris started them in the right direction by getting 4 yards on first. Then Russell Wilson tried to tuck it and run – he didn’t tuck it well enough as Bobby Okereke forced a fumble.
With the ball at the 47, New York was in the driver’s seat. Malik Nabers and Tyrone Tracy got them to the Steelers 22.
- On first down Cam Heyward stopped Tracy after two.
- On 2nd and 8 T.J. Watt foreshadowed things to come by stopping him for no gain.
- On 3rd down Watt executed the perfect trifecta, sacking Jones, stripping the ball and recovering
Mean Joe Greene closes in on Roger Staubach in the Super Bowl. Photo Credit: Kickoff Coverage.com
Football is the ultimate team game. In any given generation, there are a few players who can single handedly shift the outcome of a game. Most of them are quarterbacks. A few are wide receivers, tight ends, and in an earlier era running backs.
- The number of defensive players who can do this is even slimmer.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have seen them before: Joe Greene, Mel Blount, Jack Lambert, Rod Woodson, Troy Polamalu, and James Harrison.
And today T.J. Watt not only stands prominently on that list but continues to add to his contribution.
Many Hands in the Pile
Watt of course didn’t win this game on his own. He had plenty of help all the way up to Beanie Bishop’s final interception. They beat the Giants because, as Mike Tomlin explained, “I had a bunch of guys that wanted to be the reason why we were successful.”
And that’s a dynamic the Steelers need to maintain coming out of the bye week.
