Taken from the grade book of a teacher pleased to see his students cooking in the kitchen, here is the Pittsburgh Steelers Report Card for the win over the Bengals a Paycor Stadium.
T.J. Watt strip sacks Joe Burrow. Photo Credit: X.com
Quarterbacks
Russell Wilson was 29 of 23 for 414 yards 3 touchdowns and 1 interception. But those numbers don’t do him justice, as he spread the ball to 10 receivers across the entire field. More importantly, he maintained control in the huddle, sidelines, at the line of scrimmage and in the pocket. Justin Fields ran once, and he made it count. Grade: A
Running Backs
Najee Harris bounced back from a tough game, running for a touchdown, 75 yards on 16 carries and doing damage through the air with 6 catches for 54 yards. Jaylen Warren had a quiet day running for 9 yards on three carries, but he caught 4 passes for 55 yards. Cordarrelle Patterson had 3 runs for 16 yards and 3 catches for 27 yards. A good day for the running backs. Grade: B
Tight Ends
Pat Freiermuth caught 6 passes for 68 yards and a touchdown. Darnell Washington had 1 catch for 10 yards but threw a decisive block on Harris’ touchdown. MyCole Pruitt caught 2 passes for 21 yards. Grade: A-
Wide Receivers
George Pickens had 3 catches for 75 yards and a touchdown, but his penalties hurt the team. Van Jefferson had one catch for 43 yards that probably should have been a touchdown. Calvin Austin did haul in his own touchdown and made another big catch for 2 grabs and 29 yards. Ben Skowronek had one catch for 23 yards, but it was a big one. Pickens’ penalties drop the grade for this group. Grade: B+
Offensive Line
This was the offensive line we’ve been waiting to see. After getting manhandled by Cleveland, the line turned in its best performance of the season. Russell Wilson was only sacked twice and the Browns only had two tackles for losses. Dan Moore bounced back too, neutralizing Trey Hendrickson. Grade: A
Defensive Line
Keeanu Benton’s single tackle doesn’t do justice to the game he played as his number was visible on several key play including a sack. Larry Ogunjobi had 1 tackle. The line did give up some rushing yards early, but that was not a factor as the game evolved. Grade: B
Linebackers
T.J. Watt dominated, with a strip sack that set up a score and another sack on third down the forced a field goal. Nick Herbig had a strip sack of his own, which Payton Wilson returned for a touchdown. Patrick Queen had nine tackles, and Preston Smith made a heads up fumble recovery after Wilson couldn’t hold on to the fumble that Watt forced. Grade: A
Secondary
Donte Jackson logged yet another heads up interception on a tipped pass, which had he not lost his footing, probably would have taken to the house. DeShon Elliott led the unit in tackles, while Cam Sutton quietly tipped away 2 passes. Joey Porter Jr. kept Tee Higgins in check, but his pass interference penalties award the Bengals premium field position far too often. Grade: B-
Secondary
Danny Smith’s special teams gave up a blocked kick which fortunately wasn’t decisive, but it could have been. The Steelers kick return coverage was also a bit below average. However, Chris Boswell was money on his two clean attempts, and Connor Heyward recovered the on sides kick. Corliss Waitman one punt for 38 yards might not look like much, but he pinned the Bengals down. Grade: C
Coaching
Be honest, if someone told you before the game that the Steelers third offensive play from scrimmage would be a pick six you’d have thought that signaled disaster, right?
As it turns out, Arthur Smith’s offense was able to stand toe-to-toe with Joe Burrow and company and come out on the winning side. He opened out the game book and literally got everyone involved the and the results were tremendous.
- Teryl Austin’s defense didn’t have quite as good of a day.
They gave up a lot of yards and Cincinnati’s final touchdown was far too easy. Still, the defense forced three turnovers and sacked the Bengals into a field goal. And the two three and outs they forced to bookend the first half should not be overlooked.
Cam Heyward sacks Joe Burrow. Photo Credit: Chaz Palla, Tribune-Review
The loss to the Browns was disappointing. Losses like that can often be deflating. Mike Tomlin however did not let the happen. The Steelers came out focused and remained that way through to the end. Grade: A-
Unsung Hero Award
The ESPN highlight reels of the Steelers defense will feature T.J. Watt, Nick Herbig and Payton Wilson as they should. But it is no coincidence that those big running plays the Bengals enjoyed happened while this player was on the bench. When he wasn’t on the bench he was sacking Joe Burrow, slamming Chase Brown for a loss at the goal line or just tipping a pass that got intercepted and for that Cam Heyward wins the Unsung Hero Award for the Steelers 2024 win over the Bengals at Paycor Stadium.
