It’s a position group that has been much-maligned this season as there have been plenty of struggles, but as of late the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive line is starting to play better and better under position coach Pat Meyer.
That’s rather impressive considering the injuries the group has dealt with so far this season.
The performance Monday night against the New York Giants in a 26-18 win was another example of the upward trajectory for the group, particularly in the run game.
The Steelers rushed for 167 yards on the night and Najee Harris had his third-straight 100-yard rushing performance. Though there were some struggles in pass protection as quarterback Russell Wilson was sacked four times, the offensive line as a whole had a strong game.
For NFL analyst Brian Baldinger, the Steelers’ offensive line looked like a “well-coached” unit Monday night and formed a “wall of Steel” against the Giants, allowing the offense to operate at a high leve.
“Let’s just watch this offensive line go to work. Najee really benefited from it,” Baldinger said in his video breakdown on Twitter. “Alright, then you get this, you really sell the run. Sell the run and you get play-action pass off it. Look at that nice little steel or wall right there. A wall of steel. Russell Wilson on the run finds his big tight end out there. Darnell Washington got the ball down the field consistently.”
When the Steelers have been rolling under offensive coordinator Arthur Smith this season, the offensive line has led the way as the run game has taken over games, which has then set up play-action passing.
With Russell Wilson under center now as opposed to Justin Fields, the Steelers are really starting to take off in the play-action game. That was again the case on Monday night against the Giants. Wilson connected on a number of play-action plays down the field, resulting in big moments for the Steelers.
That included a 43-yard strike to George Pickens in the second half, one that Baldinger highlighted in his Twitter video, praising the work the offensive line did in protection.
“How about this? Max protection off run action. Alright, get this ball to Pickens. They got the ball down the field. Look at the max protection right here. This is what I call the cradle of love. Can it get any better than that?” Baldinger said of the pocket created by the Steelers’ offensive line on the play. “That’s like Friday afternoon walkthrough and take the shot. Perfect shot to Pickens. Russell played well.
“The line played well, the running game worked. That was good. Good night for the Steelers.”
It was a good night for the Steelers offensively as they racked up 426 total yards. They should have had more than 26 points, too, as two touchdowns were taken off the board — one for a penalty and one on a strange overturned call that left people confused. But even with the struggles to finish in the red zone, the Steelers’ offense played well once again and has the team rolling into its bye week at 6-2.
The play of the offensive line in recent weeks is a key part of that. Hat tip to Pat Meyer.
