After forcing two fumbles in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 32-13 Week 6 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, it should come as no surprise that T.J. Watt was the highest-graded Steelers player with a 94.7 grade coming out of the win. Elandon Roberts ranked second with a 91.9 overall grade, while Najee Harris, who played his best game of the season and one of the best of his career, led the offense and was third with a 90.7 overall grade.
Harris was the only offensive player in Pittsburgh’s top five, which was rounded out by DL Cameron Heyward (86.4 grade) and CB Donte Jackson (72.9 grade). Jackson had an interception off QB Aidan O’Connell and almost had another one later in the game, while Heyward had a sack and was in O’Connell’s face all day as he did a great job collapsing the pocket and controlling the interior.
It was yet another standout performance from Watt, who ranked as one of Pittsburgh’s top players in the team’s Week 5 loss against the Dallas Cowboys as well. Watt’s been a complete stud again for the Steelers, and ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky thinks he deserves MVP consideration this season.
As for Roberts, he played 27 snaps and was impactful with 5 total tackles, 3 solo tackles, a tackle for a loss and a quarterback hit. With Patrick Queen playing well yesterday, the Steelers’ middle linebacker corps could play a big role down the stretch if Queen continues his level of play. Roberts played the same number of snaps as LB Payton Wilson, and the two of them complement each other well.
Harris helped Pittsburgh’s ground game take off, opening things up for Justin Fields on the ground and having an incredibly efficient game. He averaged 7.6 yards per carry, finishing with 14 carries for 106 yards and a touchdown while adding 2 receptions for 16 yards. It’s the type of performance that makes life a lot easier for the Steelers on offense, and the sort of game that the Steelers expected to have on the ground under Arthur Smith.
All-around, it was a solid week for the Steelers, and they’re going to need to take care of business the next two weeks ahead of the bye with their gauntlet of a schedule in the second half. But if they can continue to force turnovers and run the ball the way they did against the Raiders, the Steelers should be just fine.
