Omar Khan certainly didn’t leave fans bored ahead of the trade deadline. The Pittsburgh Steelers managed to improve at wide receiver and edge rusher with a pair of shrewd moves. They were already rolling, so now they should be even better. However, that doesn’t instantly make them the favorites to come out of the AFC. The back-to-back Super Bowl-champion Kansas City Chiefs are still the cream of the crop.
“The dynasty is not going to come crashing down because the Steelers added Mike Williams,” NFL analyst Kyle Brandt said Wednesday on Good Morning Football. “We’re not gonna have books written about it. Patrick Mahomes is 15-3 in the playoffs.
“Let’s just remember this when we have all these Chiefs conversations. Two of these losses were to Tom Brady, which means there’s one active quarterback who has ever beat him in the playoffs. It’s Joe Burrow, and he’s sub-.500 right now.”
Brandt might not believe the acquisition of Williams will help the Steelers beat the Chiefs, but it certainly won’t hurt their chances. The Chiefs are undefeated this season, but they haven’t looked dominant. They have weaknesses, and the Steelers might be able to exploit them.
For all their offensive success, the Chiefs have had to rely on their defense lately. They’ve suffered numerous injuries on offense, although they did their best to restock. However, their offensive tackle situation is shaky. The interior of their offensive line is elite, but they’re vulnerable on the edges.
What is the Steelers’ strongest position group? Edge rusher. T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith are arguably the pass-rushing duo in the league. Nick Herbig is a great backup, and now they have veteran Preston Smith to serve as depth too. That doesn’t mean the Steelers can easily beat the Chiefs, but it gives them a greater chance than Brandt makes it seem.
The biggest issue is that the Chiefs have Patrick Mahomes, the premier quarterback in the league. Mahomes hasn’t been at his best this year — he second in the NFL in interceptions thrown — but when it’s mattered, he’s been unbelievable.
Quarterback matters a little less than Brandt implies, mainly because Mahomes is on the field playing against a defense, but if a team wants to beat Kansas City, it will still need to put up points. The Steelers have been able to do that recently, although the sample size is small with Russell Wilson at quarterback. However, Williams should help them improve their offensive fluidity.
Luckily, the Steelers won’t have to wait for the playoffs to prove Brandt wrong. They play the visiting Chiefs on Christmas Day, giving them a chance to test their mettle. The Chiefs are undefeated, but they aren’t bulletproof. Just because a team has the best quarterback doesn’t guarantee it victory.
