The Pittsburgh Steelers Are A Good Football Team

What happened against Washington proved it

Let me tell you something about good football teams. They win games even when things don’t go perfectly. They win games even when they make mistakes, or don’t have their “A” game in all facets. They win these games at home. And the really good teams win them on the road.

The Steelers are 7-2. They are good, and they are trending towards really good, after a 28-27 thriller over the Commanders Sunday afternoon.

How did they try to self-sabotage? Let us count the ways:

-James Pierre went full Dwight “Hands of” Stone (if you’re under 35, I apologize that you likely had to Google this reference) on what would have otherwise have been a flawless fake punt, setting Washington up for a 15-yard touchdown drive that tied the game in the first quarter.

-One of Russell Wilson’s famed moon balls finally landed in the hands of a guy wearing the wrong-colored jersey; it was his first interception since joining the Steelers.

-Jaylen Warren capped off what looked like a dominant go-ahead drive that took nearly half the fourth quarter by going full Earnest Byner and fumbling the ball back to the Commanders at the one-yard line.

-The $100 million defense gave up a 77-yard touchdown drive before halftime, and, knowing they needed to make a statement to start the second half, promptly gave up another touchdown on a 71-yard march. That’s how a 14-10 lead becomes a 24-14 deficit.

For bad teams, and certainly for most Steelers teams of recent vintage, that many missteps would be too much to overcome. Not this group. Not with Wilson at quarterback. This is different.

How refreshing it is to watch Mike Tomlin’s team beat a good opponent on the road without needing everything to be just so. Even when Washington took their ten-point lead, even when Warren fumbled after the offense had marched 86 yards, it didn’t feel like the Steelers were done for.

And they weren’t. The defense (which surged after Washington’s touchdown drive to open the second half) and Wilson made sure of that.

Something struck me about the game-winning throw to Mike Williams; it happened on 3^rd-and-9. There was no thought about trying to get five or six yards to make fourth down more manageable. It was a pure go-ball. For Tomlin to greenlight a call like that shows immense confidence and trust in his quarterback, two things that only increased after Wilson paid it off with an absolute perfecta.

Truth be told, if Justin Fields was still at the helm of this offense, and the Steelers were in the exact same situation, I don’t think it plays out the same way. I think Tomlin tells Arthur Smith to try and get a chunk of the required yardage, and then takes his chances with a fourth-and-short attempt. Rolling the dice on 3^rd-and-9 only happens because you have belief you can convert 4^th-and-9, if need be.

(One other thing about that play, by the way: Williams admitted that Calvin Austin would have been the one running the route had he not been injured, and Wilson intimated that Williams wasn’t totally familiar with his role on the play, so Wilson quickly gave him a few directives in real-time, right before the snap. The fact that he got the player lined up, then threw an absolutely ridiculous ball while off-balance, in the face of an oncoming pass rush, is preposterous. It’s the sort of thing that only the gold jacket types can do.)

Tomlin’s trust in Wilson, and Wilson paying off that trust is the thing about this team that feels most different. It has unlocked a completely new dimension of the Steelers’ offense. Opposing defenses can no longer get away with sitting on short routes, or selling out to stop the running game. They have to defend the whole field. Moreover, they have to defend the deepest parts of the field first.

In other words, an offense that scared no one is suddenly an offense that scares everyone. Wilson has made this group a quick-strike outfit, and an efficient one. Pittsburgh gained just 312 yards of offense, but managed 28 points. It was a truly opportunistic performance, and wouldn’t you know it, good teams are also opportunistic.

You can see the swagger starting to build, too. This isn’t “fake it ‘til you make it,” it’s very clear that the entire team has been energized by Wilson, and collectively believes they can beat anyone. I don’t think that was the case over the last few years, no matter what anyone might have said when asked.

To be fair, that belief has been building for a while, it’s just that Wilson’s presence has kicked things into a higher gear. The Steelers are a good team not just because they’re averaging 31 points per game in his three starts, but also because they went 4-2 with Justin Fields at the helm, with an offense that clearly wasn’t what it is now.

The four wins weren’t against pushovers, either. Atlanta is likely to win the NFC South. The Broncos should have beaten the Chiefs last week and absolutely have a chance to make the playoffs. The Chargers are quietly turning into the classic, “team you don’t want to see in the postseason.”

Atlanta and Denver were on the road, to boot. So was the win against the Raiders, and before you laugh about that one, consider the fact that Las Vegas rallied from 10 points down in the fourth quarter to stun the Ravens in Week 2.

The defense isn’t perfect, but I can’t name more than three or four in the NFL that are definitively better. Preston Smith makes them deeper at outside linebacker, and just in time, too, with Alex Highsmith looking like he’s going to miss 2-3 weeks with an ankle injury.

Across the offensive line, there are improvements; while it pains me to say this, Dan Moore Jr. has been serviceable or better at left tackle. Isaac Seumalo has been a bastion of stability since returning to the lineup. Zach Frazier picked up right where he left off pre-injury in his return to the lineup against Washington. Mason McCormick has had growing pains, but also moves people when they don’t want to be moved. And finally, coming off a bye week, Broderick Jones had his best game of the season. Pro Football Focus graded him as the Steelers’ best lineman, and according to their charting, he didn’t allow a single quarterback pressure.

In other words, things are rounding into form everywhere you look. And wouldn’t you know it, the Baltimore Ravens and their NFL-leading offense are paying a visit this Sunday. In some ways, it’s a measuring-stick game. The Ravens still look like one of the three or four best teams in the NFL. Beat them, and the AFC North becomes a very attainable prize, and the Steelers take their place right near the top of the NFL heap.

This isn’t a prove-it game, though. Nine games in, we know the Steelers are good. And maybe a lot more.