Though the Pittsburgh Steelers opponents have been known for months, knowing the order puts the season in a different perspective. Knowing not just who the team will play but exactly when adds a layer of excitement. We’ve already gone through the schedule, and yesterday, Joe Clark discussed the top three games that could define the team’s season.
Today, we’ll get more specific with my top five individual matchups to watch for during the course of the season.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers WR George Pickens vs New York Jets CB Sauce Gardner (Week 7)
This could be a fun and loud matchup. Two players who will let you know when they make a play. Pickens and Gardner are freak athletes with great size and pedigree who have made plenty of plays in their young careers. Gardner has won Rookie of the Year and made two All-Pro teams in his first two seasons. Pickens’ tape is already littered with spectacular catches.
Both came out as part of the 2022 NFL Draft Class, so they’ve been walking the same journey throughout their careers. The No. 1 receiver in the Steelers’ offense, Pickens should be peppered with targets this season while Gardner and the Jets’ game plan will be to shut him down. And this one will be under the primetime Sunday night lights, magnifying the matchup all the more.
2. Pittsburgh Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr. vs Dallas Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb (Week 5)
Another Sunday night matchup here. Lamb is already one of the NFL’s top wide receivers, while Porter is an emerging corner. Based on how he was used as a rookie, Porter should shadow Lamb throughout most of the game. The Cowboys’ offense runs through Lamb, leading the NFL with 135 receptions last season for over 1,700 yards and 12 touchdowns.
But outside of Lamb, there isn’t anyone who scares you. Brandin Cooks is a speedster but isn’t anywhere close to the same tier of player Lamb is, while Jalen Tolbert won’t put fear in many. Take Lamb away, and the Steelers will come out on top. Porter won’t be alone in that, as the Steelers will bracket and roll coverages that way, but Porter will be the first and main line of defense.
3. Pittsburgh Steelers LT Broderick Jones vs Los Angeles Chargers EDGE Khalil Mack (Week 3)
There are some assumptions with this one. It assumes Jones flips back to the left side, seemingly the team’s track with Troy Fautanu getting right tackle reps in rookie minicamp. And it assumes Mack will primarily play RDE/ROLB. He’s played both sides, but with a healthy Joey Bosa, Mack should generally be on the offense’s left with Bosa opposite.
For Jones, this will be among his toughest NFL tasks. Mack is a veteran pass rusher who knows the tools of the trade and racked up 17 sacks in his age-32 season last year, becoming just the third player in the official sack era to have such a season at that age (Robert Mathis and Michael Strahan are the others).
With Russell Wilson or Justin Fields at quarterback, they’re going to hold onto the ball. Meaning they need tackles who will give them time to stay upright.
4. Pittsburgh Steelers C Zach Frazier vs Baltimore Ravens DT Justin Madubuike (Weeks 11, 16)
Gotta put an AFC North matchup in here. Frazier is a safe bet to begin the year as the Steelers’ starting center. He’ll face plenty of challenges from interior linemen this year in an era with so much d-line talent. He’ll see Atlanta’s Grady Jarrett, Kansas City’s Chris Jones and the New York Giants’ Dexter Lawrence.
But I’ll put the focus on Mabubuike, still an underrated national name despite a stellar 2023 season. He finished with 13 sacks and earned his first Pro Bowl, getting paid handsomely by the Ravens in the offseason. Steelers-Ravens are games built around the trenches, and Frazier will have to hold up in pass protection, showing he can win 1-on-1.
5. Pittsburgh Steelers LB Patrick Queen vs Baltimore Ravens RB Derrick Henry (Weeks 11, 16)
One more divisional matchup, even if it’ll take until November to see it happen. The former Raven versus the current one, signed over from the Tennessee Titans. Queen will be a storyline in these games, defecting to join the rival Steelers, and he’s embraced every aspect of it.
It’s a simple premise. The Ravens want to run the ball. The Steelers want to stop the run. Whoever does their job better probably wins this one. And these two will be in the literal middle of that fight.
Bonus: Pittsburgh Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt vs Los Angeles Chargers RT Joe Alt (Week 3)
A bonus matchup — this one’s on the house. And a fun one early in the year. Watt will face fifth overall pick Joe Alt in the Steelers’ home opener. A college left tackle, Alt should kick over and keep Rashawn Slater on the left side. Alt is a house at 6-8 and was the consensus top tackle in this year’s draft. He’ll have his hands full with Watt, whose ability to dip and rip through is among the best in football. How the two tango in the run game is also worth watching.
Honorable Mentions: WR Roman Wilson vs Raiders CB Nate Hobbs (Week 6), Colts QB Anthony Richardson vs FS Minkah Fitzpatrick (Week 4), RT Troy Fautanu vs Giants DE Brian Burns (Week 8)
Wilson and Hobbs will be a feisty slot matchup. Hobbs is underrated as one of the best nickel players in the game who rarely comes off the field. Richardson will be a handful for the Steelers, injured and missing last year’s contest. And Fautanu will face a top-end rusher in Burns, acquired from Carolina this offseason.
