This week begins the long stretch to the end of the season for the Pittsburgh Steelers. This has always been the most intimidating portion of their schedule. It starts with the Washington Commanders, one of the best teams in the NFL. The Commanders’ offense has been electric, so the Steelers will likely need to continue their offensive success under Russell Wilson. However, analyst Pete Prisco believes Wilson won’t see as much success this week as he has been.
“My thing I wanna see here is Russell Wilson on the road,” Prisco said Wednesday on CBS Sports HQ. “We saw him against the Jets in primetime. They were down two-and-a-half defensive backs in that game.
“We saw him against the Giants, who were down two defensive backs in that game, in primetime, at home. Now you’re out on the road, and I think it’s gonna be a bigger challenge for him to get that offense going the way he wants it to get going.”
The Commanders’ offense gets all the glamor, but their defense is also strong. According to FOX Sports, they have the 14th-ranked total defense. They’ve also just added former All-Pro corner Marshon Lattimore, who might play this week. Head coach Dan Quinn was also the architect of the Seattle Seahawks “Legion of Boom” defense that won a Super Bowl.
The Jets and Giants have solid defenses, but as Prisco said, they were injured when they played the Steelers. That shouldn’t throw cold water on Wilson’s performances. Those defenses were still mostly healthy, and Wilson played well. He also hadn’t played in a regular season game since last December, which should help build credence for his work.
The Steelers also added receiver Mike Williams, which should help improve their offense. His strengths align well with Wilson’s incredible deep ball. Maybe Wilson won’t lead the Steelers to 30 points this week, but seeing him come out and fall on his face would be a little surprising.
This game feels like a toss-up, so it’s tough to say what the final result will be. With multiple division opponents up next, Wilson and the Steelers will need to continue to look sharp. The Commanders are a great team, but if the Steelers want to be seen as serious threats in the playoffs, they’ll need to beat opponents of this quality. That means they’ll need Wilson to continue elevating their offense.
