The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t play an AFC opponent until Sunday when they won 18-16 over the Baltimore Ravens. They don’t have to wait very long for the next divisional matchup. Up next? A Thursday night tilt in Cleveland against the Browns.
Short weeks are less than ideal, to say the least. It throws off the routine of a normal game week. The Steelers are no stranger to short weeks. They suffered through quite the congestion at the end of the 2023 season, and DL Cam Heyward was less than happy with that.
There is one silver lining to this short week, though. Or at least CB Donte Jackson was able to think of one, anyway.
“I think the best thing is to face a divisional opponent. ’cause at least you’re familiar with these teams,” said Jackson after practice on Tuesday per video shared by the SteelersLive X account. “You have a bead on what you could get, a bead on how they would try to attack you. With it being a short week, you don’t have much time to prepare for a very, you know, spanking new opponent. So, I think it helps in that aspect. But it is tough, just being how physical this game is, being how physical last Sunday’s game was.”
The Steelers are coming off quite the physical battle against the Ravens. That surprises no one, especially the players involved. Everyone expected a fight between these two rivals, and it delivered.
Now, the Steelers get to do it all over again with the Browns. But Jackson makes a good point. The head coach and defensive coordinator are quite familiar with Cleveland, as are many of the players on defense and a number of the offensive guys.
That’s better than facing an NFC opponent on a short week that you only see every four years or so. The Steelers-Browns familiarity should, at least, make game prep easier.
But even familiarity doesn’t ease the aches and pains of a knockdown, drag-out AFC North battle. Thankfully for the Steelers, the injury report looks pretty good outside of Alex Highsmith. They’ll need all the help they can get on short rest to take on the Browns.
