As we do every week to get you ready for the upcoming game, our X-factor of the week. Sometimes, it’s a player, unit, concept, or scheme. Here’s our X-factor for Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
X-FACTOR: Pittsburgh’s Offensive Tackles
The Football Gods have a funny way of playing tricks on us all. Just as the Pittsburgh Steelers were settling into Troy Fautanu at right tackle, he was taken away. Finally healthy without a rotation, Fautanu was in a big test against the Los Angeles Chargers’ talented EDGE rushers. Now, he’ll be fortunate to make it back this season. While the extent of his Friday knee injury isn’t known, the initial word sounds ominous. You don’t want phrases like “out indefinitely” and “several independent evaluations” to ride sidecar with a knee injury.
That vaults Broderick Jones back into a starting role one week after a brutal outing against the Denver Broncos that had many questioning his NFL future. Jones doesn’t have time to dwell on his mistakes. He has to embrace the opportunity of what lies ahead. Maybe that’s the best thing for him. He’s talented, he’s shown he can hang in the league, and getting right back on the bike after you fall off can be better than sitting and waiting for a chance in the distant future.
But it won’t be easy. Never is when you’re blocking Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack. They’re capable of rushing from either side, meaning Jones must be ready for both. He must be more aggressive and show better technique if he wants to hang with either of these guys.
Dan Moore has been the team’s best (and healthiest) tackle this summer and has to bring it again. Physically, he’s not as gifted as Mack, Bosa, or even Broderick Jones at the peak of his game. But Moore has shown staying power with hard work, cleaned-up technique, and good run blocking.
Pass protection gets the focus against the Chargers’ ends, but Moore and Jones have to run block, too. This offense doesn’t work if they can’t run the ball and stay on schedule and the last thing Pittsburgh needs is to let Mack and Bosa pin their ears back on third and long. That’s when those guys can rush freely, and the Chargers can run games and twists, adding to the chaos.
This is trench warfare. The Chargers and Steelers play the same brand of football. Out-muscle the opponent. And both side knows what the other one wants to bring to the table. Pittsburgh’s gotta throw the first punch and stay on them early. That’ll soften the defense up for the later rounds and knockout blow. Jones and Moore have to be the guys leading that fight.
