The majority of the back half of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ schedule in 2023 is populated by teams playing backup quarterbacks, either due to injury or performance reasons. They’ve played quarterbacks who did not begin the season as starters in three of their past four games and will do so in three of their next four, as well.
The exception is this Sunday when they host the Arizona Cardinals at the Stadium Formerly Known as Heinz Field. The former first-overall pick, QB Kyler Murray has been back under center for the past few weeks, and while that hasn’t immediately translated into wins (with one key defender warning that it’s stupid to look at teams’ records at this time of year), the Steelers understand the problems he poses.
“You’ve got a guy that really can make all the throws, has unbelievable mobility”, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin told reporters yesterday, via transcript provided by the team’s media department. “The guy has unbelievable mobility. He’s got a couple of touchdown rushes already. You see him keep drives alive on third down. You see him avoid the rush and get rid of the ball. So, he’s a really versatile player”.
Murray already has three rushing touchdowns for the Cardinals in the three games in which he has played since coming off the Reserve/Injured List. He’s rushed for 86 yards on 13 attempts, though he only ran once (for a two-yard touchdown) last week.
The majority of that has come on scrambles, including a 22-yard gain against the Houston Texans and a 13-yard pickup against the Atlanta Falcons. He also scrambled for a touchdown against the Falcons from six yards out, but his other two scores were designed runs. And that’s just about when he takes off. We’re not even talking about his ability to move the pocket and continue to keep his eyes down the field and make throws. And sometimes those runs are even more than the stats say.
“I think those are the things we see with him coming back in their offense. I think it’s probably opened up the playbook a little more for some of the downfield stuff they like to do”, Austin added. “Again, we’re going to have to do a great job of keeping him in the pocket and trying to limit his scrambles and his ability to make big plays outside the pocket”.
Murray had his best game as a passer last week, going 27-for-45 for 256 yards with one touchdown and zero interceptions. But he was also sacked four times. Murray’s explosive mobility can be a double-edged sword at times as his efforts to extend plays expose him to greater risk. The Steelers must put the pressure on him as much as possible in that regard, and of course they are equipped to do that with the likes of T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Cameron Heyward.
