Things have changed quickly for the Pittsburgh Steelers. A few weeks ago, they were on top of the world. Their defense looked elite, and their offense was doing enough to win them games. Now, both units look like they have a lot more question marks. Pete Prisco of CBS Sports believes everyone was a little quick to praise the Steelers, including himself.
“When you go back and look at who they beat, they beat Kirk Cousins in Week 1 when he was coming off the injury. They beat the Chargers when [Justin] Herbert went out. They beat the Broncos in [Bo] Nix’s second game,” Prisco said Tuesday on CBS Sports HQ. “They haven’t really beaten anybody. We kind of rushed them up, and I’m guilty of it.”
It’s fair to criticize the teams the Steelers have beaten, but there’s nothing they can do about that. They don’t make the schedule. All they can do is beat the teams that are in front of them, and they were doing that.
Also, it’s hard to claim those teams are all bad. The Atlanta Falcons are currently 3-2, and they managed to play a tight game against the Kansas City Chiefs as well. Yes, Cousins was playing in his first game since tearing his Achiles, but he looked much improved the following week. The Steelers defense may have simply just done a great job that week.
The Denver Broncos are also now 3-2, winning every game since their loss to the Steelers. The Los Angeles Chargers were undefeated before they played the Steelers and firing on all cylinders. It’s true that quarterback Justin Herbert left the game with an injury, but they were doing a good job at containing him before that.
The truth of the matter is that any team can win on any given day. It’s the NFL, and everyone is a professional. Even the Carolina Panthers, arguably the worst team in the league, won a game against the Las Vegas Raiders. By the way, that same Raiders team beat the Baltimore Ravens.
Prisco is correct that it was too early to say the Steelers were one of the best teams in the NFL, but that could be said about any team. The Super Bowl isn’t won in Week 4. Injuries happen, teams get better and worse, and things change. That’s life in the NFL. The Steelers look bad right now, but in four weeks, people might be singing their praises again. Anything can happen.
