The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Atlanta Falcons, 18-10, by following a script that’s been pretty much the same in their victories over the past few seasons: run the ball well, play good defense, and don’t turn the ball over. Pittsburgh didn’t find the end zone, but six Chris Boswell field goals and three takeaways were the difference for the Steelers, but former NFL QB Brady Quinn thinks it’s “frustrating” for Steelers fans to follow the same formula every year.
“Isn’t that the frustrating part if you’re a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, isn’t this what you dealt with last year,” Quinn said on Two Pros and a Cup of Joe.
While the game plan was similar, the execution was different. The last few seasons, Pittsburgh’s ground game hasn’t been able to get going early in the season. But against Atlanta, the Steelers ran for 137 yards, with Najee Harris picking up 70 and Justin Fields running for 57. That was a key difference for the Steelers, and frankly, it’s a formula that’s worked for them.
They won 10 games and made the playoffs last season with quarterback play that’s worse than they have this season. And if the Steelers continue to open up their playbook with either Fields or Russell Wilson under center, they’ll be able to get more explosive.
It works for the Steelers because of the way the roster is constructed. They have the best defensive player in the league in T.J. Watt, another elite pass-rusher in Alex Highsmith, an All-Pro safety in Minkah Fitzpatrick and Joey Porter Jr. emerging as a lockdown corner on the outside. Additionally, Cameron Heyward looked more like himself on the interior of the defensive line, and Pittsburgh’s defense shut down Atlanta in the second half, limiting the Falcons to just over 10 minutes of time of possession.
Pittsburgh doesn’t need a quarterback to throw for 300+ yards to win. Obviously, it’s nice if that happens, but they can win by controlling the ball and limiting turnovers. Their game plan on Sunday also could’ve been impacted by the fact that Russell Wilson went down on Thursday in practice after aggravating his calf injury. The team turned to Fields, which wasn’t initially the plan.
We saw the Steelers get more comfortable and Arthur Smith opened things up a little more in the second half, in Atlanta. As the season goes on, I’d expect to see more creativity out of the offense, which could open things up for some bigger plays. But wins certainly aren’t frustrating, and if this is the formula that leads the Steelers to wins, I think most of Steeler Nation would take it.
