While the Pittsburgh Steelers are 9-3 and atop the AFC North, they are not considered legitimate contenders to win the Super Bowl like the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, or Baltimore Ravens. NFL Media’s Bucky Brooks believes the Steelers deserve recognition as a “legitimate threat” to win the Super Bowl, and he gave three reasons why he thinks the Steelers could win their seventh Lombardi Trophy.
Brooks believes Pittsburgh’s defense, ball-control offense, and Russell Wilson could be enough to get them over the edge and make them champions.
Brooks wrote that the Steelers “beat their opponents into submission” with their talented defensive front, which features the likes of T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, Cameron Heyward, and Nick Herbig. He also writes that the secondary makes the quarterback pause before attempting to make “hero throws” and lauds the group for taking advantage of tipped and overthrown passes.
The game changes in the playoffs, Brooks writes, and he believes that Pittsburgh’s style of offense will overwhelm opposing teams with its ability to protect the football and control the clock. Couple that with the defense that creates turnovers and you have a recipe for success.
“With fewer total possessions in the game, the Steelers’ turnover prowess and superb ball security (plus-15 advantage in turnover differential) will put immense pressure on opponents to play near-perfect football to win in the pressure-cooker environment of the playoffs.”
Under offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, the Steelers’ rushing attack has improved, allowing them to grind out drives and control the clock. That’s important in the playoffs, as keeping the ball away from dynamic quarterbacks like Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes will give the Steelers a better chance of winning. If the run game can get going and the Steelers can control the clock, they’ll be a tough team to beat, coupled with their defense.
Finally, Brooks writes that Wilson is an X-factor, as he has Super Bowl experience and added a deep ball to an offense that didn’t have “aerial explosiveness” with Justin Fields. Wilson is coming off his best game as a Steeler, throwing for 414 yards and three touchdowns in a win over the Cincinnati Bengals. If he can continue to spread the ball around and layer the passing attack like he did against Cincinnati, it’ll add another element to the Steelers’ offense to make them dynamic.
Wilson’s arm has added a lot to Pittsburgh’s offense, and his leadership has also been a plus for an offensive group that also has Najee Harris and Pat Freiermuth as emerging leaders. Wilson’s helped take the offense to another level, and if his arm continues to be a weapon, coupled with Pittsburgh’s defense and ball-control style of football, the Steelers can hang with anyone in the league.
