One member of the Pittsburgh Steelers played arguably the best game of his career on Monday Night Football against the Cleveland Browns, while another member continued to struggle with some basic stuff for his position.
For Pro Football Focus’ Braxton Howard, it was easy to highlight fourth-year outside linebacker Alex Highsmith and second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett as the Steelers’ selections for one up and one down coming out of Week Two on Friday morning.
Highsmith, who earned the AFC’s Defensive Player of the Week honors following his performance against the Browns, was Howard’s “One Up” for the Steelers, while Pickett, who threw for just 222 yards but missed a handful of throws in the 26-22 win over the Browns, is the “One Down” player for PFF.
“Highsmith put together one of the best games of his career, posting six pressures and an 89.1 pass-rush grade. He also forced a fumble and missed zero tackles,” Howard writes.
The fourth-year pass rusher, who received a lucrative four-year, $68 million extension this offseason from the Steelers, was a force against Cleveland. He typically is against Cleveland left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. and that continued last Monday. Highsmith had a pick-six on the first play from scrimmage, catching a deflected ball and racing 30 yards for the touchdown, giving the Steelers an early spark.
After that, Highsmith was dominant against the run, recording five run stops in the win and adding six total pressures. His strip-sack on Deshaun Watson late in the fourth quarter that led to T.J Watt’s 16-yard scoop and score for the game-winning touchdown was a monumental play. It helped seal the game for the Steelers and sealed the Defensive Player of the Week award — the second of his career — for Highsmith.
With Highsmith creating pressure on one side and Watt being, well, Watt on the opposite side, the Steelers’ defensive front is going to be a problem for teams moving forward.
What is a problem right now for the Steelers though is the play of Pickett.
Pickett completed just 15-of-30 passes against the Browns for 222 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Almost a third of his yards came on a 71-yard catch-and-run by second-year wide receiver George Pickens. Pickett made a strong throw on the play, standing in against pressure and delivering a strike while taking a big shot, but much of the work from a yardage perspective was done by Pickens after the catch.
Pickett missed too many throws again last Monday night and made a few boneheaded decisions with the football, which has analysts concerned.
“The Steelers’ offense has struggled to find its footing to start the season. Pickett had a 6.6-yard average depth of target and two turnover-worthy plays in Week 2,” Howard writes.
In the win over the Browns, Pickett had just nine passes of 10-plus yards downfield. Everything continues to be short and towards the sideline with the middle of the field rarely targeted.
When it is targeted though, good things happen. There’s just not a general sense of urgency from a struggling offense to attack the middle of the field though. Pickett has to play better, offensive coordinator Matt Canada needs to put him in more positions to succeed, and the Steelers’ offense needs to find its footing — and fast.
