One of the concerns, if not the biggest, about Pittsburgh Steelers starting QB Russell Wilson this season is his penchant for taking sacks. Wilson has taken 100 sacks in 30 games the last two seasons, and if he holds onto the football too long again, Pittsburgh’s offense could struggle. That’s ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky’s biggest worry for Pittsburgh’s matchup with the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
“If he holds onto the football this weekend, Pittsburgh will get stomped by Atlanta,” Orlovsky said Thursday on Get Up And that’s my big concern in this game, because Jessie Bates, who’s the Atlanta Falcons’ safety, and now Justin Simmons, I’d say they’re in the conversation for great liars, because as a quarterback you sit there and look at ’em and go ‘I don’t know what they’re doing.’ And that forces you to play hesitant football, and all of a sudden interceptions or sacks become, and we know that’s the story of Russell Wilson, holding onto the football and sacks.”
Bates and Simmons are two of the best ball-hawking safeties in the league. They’re also two of the best all-around safeties in football. Add Matthew Judon as an EDGE rusher, and Wilson is going to have make quick reads and get rid of the ball for the Steelers’ offense to do well.
Pittsburgh will likely be a run-heavy team this season, but just how much it leans on the run in Week 1 will be a question due to Jaylen Warren coming off a hamstring injury. If Warren is limited, the Steelers won’t have their normal two-headed monster at running back with him and RB Najee Harris, and it may force Wilson to have to throw more.
If it can stay on schedule and eliminate big losses via the sack, the offense should be fine on Sunday. But it’s a fair concern given that Wilson did have a problem holding onto the ball too long at times the last two years, which contributed to his high sack total. Couple that with the fact that Pittsburgh won’t be at full strength along the offensive line with Isaac Seumalo out due to a pectoral injury, and it’s valid to wonder whether Wilson will play well enough for Pittsburgh to win.
It should be a close game on Sunday, but things could get out of hand if Pittsburgh’s offense can’t get moving. Hopefully, with a new team and a new scheme Wilson can be improved when it comes to holding onto the ball too long and taking sacks, but we’ll get our answer to that Sunday.
