The Pittsburgh Steelers moved to 10-3 with their 27-14 win over the Cleveland Browns in Week 14, and despite being the AFC’s No. 3 seed, they’re a team that former Steelers OL Willie Colon thinks could beat anyone in the AFC. A big part of that is due to Arthur Smith, whom Colon gave credit to for getting better during his first season as the Steelers’ offensive coordinator.
“Once he got out of that bye week, he realized this offense right now from a run-game standpoint needs to better. He’s evolved and they’ve been able to win on different levels,” Colon said Monday on FS1’s Breakfast Ball.
He also praised Russell Wilson for attacking the middle of the field more and said the Steelers’ offense is “arguably top 10” and that Wilson is playing like a “top-10 quarterback.”
“I’m happy with the Steelers, man. They can beat you in a multitude of ways, but I also think they are probably the most dangerous in the AFC,” Colon said.
With the Buffalo Bills losing yesterday and the Kansas City Chiefs having their hands full with the Los Angeles Chargers, it again showed that there’s no real dominant team in the AFC. The Steelers’ ball-control style of football could serve them well against those teams by keeping the ball out of the hands of Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes, although Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense haven’t been as dominant this season thanks to offensive line issues.
Pittsburgh has talent on both sides of the ball, and Wilson has added another element to its offense. Yesterday, the offense started slow, unable to get into a rhythm in the passing game without WR George Pickens, but Wilson pulled the Steelers out of it, throwing for two touchdown passes and getting into a rhythm with a few strikes to Pat Freiermuth and Mike Williams. The defense forced two turnovers and special teams got another on a muffed punt, and the Steelers’ ability to generate takeaways is something else that makes them a real threat when it comes to the playoffs.
A matchup against the 11-2 Eagles next weekend should provide a good test to see where the Steelers are, and their Week 17 game against the Chiefs will be another good test and a potential playoff preview. If the Steelers can be competitive against both of those teams, it will prove that this team is for real, and for the first time in a long time, it feels like it’s a group that could make some noise in the postseason.
