It was a wild two-week saga for wide receiver Davante Adams and the Pittsburgh Steelers. From the Steelers reportedly pursuing Adams in trade conversations with the Las Vegas Raiders to Adams missing the Week 6 matchup between the Steelers and Raiders with a hamstring injury to Adams being traded to the New York Jets two days later where he would eventually suit up against the Steelers in a Sunday Night showdown.
Adams reuniting with his former quarterback Aaron Rodgers was the talk of the NFL leading up to the Sunday night game, but the Steelers did their best to limit the sensational duo, holding Adams to just three catches for 30 yards on nine targets in their their 37-15 win.
Davante Adams joined the Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams on Tuesday morning, where he was asked about the Jets’ offensive production and the potential need for any changes.
“It’s not even about doing anything differently,” Davante Adams said. “More is just converting the opportunities we had in the game. It’s not like we couldn’t move the ball. It was relatively easy for us to move the ball at times. It was more about just not letting certain opportunities slip away, converting on third down, not getting all the way down there and then leaving it up to a field goal.”
It seemed like the Steelers were the team that couldn’t catch a break in the first half of the game, as the Jets were falling on every fumble and receiving some beneficial, controversial penalty calls. Then things took a complete 180 in the second half. An accurate Aaron Rodgers throw bounced off sure-handed receiver Garrett Wilson’s shoulder pads right into Beanie Bishop Jr.’s arms for an interception. Steelers defensive lineman Dean Lowry blocked a 35-yard Greg Zuerlein field goal attempt. And the wildest play of all was an underthrown ball from Russell Wilson to George Pickens on 3rd and 7. It bounced off safety Isaiah Oliver’s body and Pickens bobbled the ball multiple times before he secured a a 37-yard grab.
The Steelers held the Jets scoreless in the second half despite the Jets reaching their 25-yard-line on two separate drives. It could be viewed as a few fortunate breaks bailing out a vulnerable defense, but that wouldn’t reflect the season-long trend of bending, not breaking, and creating turnovers and chaos, which has defined the Steelers defense. It can be easy to move the ball against the Steelers until T.J. Watt punches the ball out or cornerback Donte Jackson intercepts the ball in the end zone.
And when the defense gets a splash play or two, the entire momentum of the game shifts, propelling the offense.
The Steelers have forced 13 turnovers through seven games, third-most in the league. On offense, they’ve only coughed the ball up four times, giving them a plus-nine turnover differential. That’s been the recipe for Mike Tomlin, Arthur Smith, and Teryl Austin: protect the football on offense and take advantage of big-play opportunities on defense. It’s a recipe that has the Steelers sitting at 5-2 through seven weeks, and it’s had plenty of players and analysts reacting exactly like Davante Adams: scratching their heads and wondering how they let a seemingly winnable game slip right through their fingertips.
