My final Pittsburgh Steelers thoughts as the team faces the Minnesota Vikings in Ireland.
1. THE STEELERS MAY HAVE A TRAVEL CHALLENGE AGAIN
When the Steelers traveled to London in 2013 for their first and only prior international game, they departed on Thursday night and arrived on Friday morning. By all accounts, the players and coaches struggled (and many failed) to stay awake in meetings and during practice. The team never had a proper chance to adjust to the new time zone, and it showed on game day, as Pittsburgh looked sluggish in a 37-24 loss. By contrast, the Vikings arrived in London earlier in the week and were well rested for the game.
This time, the Steelers considered ways to correct that mistake. There were reports that they chose to depart earlier this week and give the team time to get past their jet lag. That changed, based on what Art Rooney II called a “football decision”, whatever that means. Instead, head coach Mike Tomlin changed the practice schedule to earlier in the day and advised the players to go to bed earlier to prepare for the upcoming time change.
The Steelers once again arrived on Friday, so they risk the same problems the players and coaches faced last time. Minnesota’s travel plans were similar to Pittsburgh regarding their dates, so they won’t have the acclimation advantage they did last time. The Vikings had one slight edge though. Their players enjoyed business class flat bed seats while the Steelers were spread out in the economy cabin.
2. WELCOME BACK, DESHON ELLIOTT
After suffering an MCL sprain in the season opener, safety DeShon Elliott missed the next two games. He was listed as a full participant at Friday’s practice and has no injury designation heading into the weekend.
The timing of Elliott’s return could not be better. The Steelers’ secondary will be facing one of the NFL’s best receivers in Justin Jefferson, who is averaging 16.7 yards per catch. To make matters more challenging for Pittsburgh’s defensive backs, wide receiver Jordan Addison will make his season debut after a three-game suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
Facing a Vikings team that has already logged 367 rushing yards in three games, it is also good news that the Steelers will get one of their most reliable tacklers back on the field.
3. AARON RODGERS WILL FEEL THE PRESSURE
All Steelers fans know the history of Brian Flores. After three seasons as head coach, he was fired by the Miami Dolphins. Flores was given a home for a year with the Steelers, serving as senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach. The following year, he joined the coaching staff in Minnesota as the defensive coordinator. Now in his third season with the Vikings, Flores has shown his abilities both for player evaluation and, more importantly, scheming up defensive looks that disguise his actual plans, making life miserable for opposing offenses…and Steelers fans who wish he had stayed in Pittsburgh instead of Teryl Austin.
Flores blitzes at a high rate, a challenge that Rodgers has not handled well in recent years. He has a dismal completion rate of 27.3% when pressured. Worse still, 24% of pressures result in sacks, per PFF. Rodgers has been throwing short of the chains, and that won’t work well against a defense that has only allowed 12 third-down conversions of a total of 38 attempts.
Not all of this is on Rodgers. The Steelers’ offensive line has not done its job to establish a successful run game, and they aren’t giving their quarterback adequate protection and time to let plays develop. But Rodgers will be the one to feel the heat from the Vikings.
4. DON’T DISRESPECT CARSON WENTZ
Now with his sixth NFL team, quarterback Carson Wentz has earned the title of journeyman. That doesn’t mean the former second overall pick in the 2016 draft will be easy for the Steelers’ defense to handle.
In his first start for Minnesota last week, Wentz wasn’t asked to do too much in a 48-10 blowout win where his defense scored two touchdowns. Wentz did enough, though, and didn’t give the ball to the other team that day. Over his 10-year NFL career, Wentz has had 72 fumbles, and 29 were recovered by his opponent. That presents an opportunity for a Steelers defensive unit that forced multiple fumbles last week. Wentz also has 12 fourth-quarter comebacks and 13 game-winning drives in his NFL career. The tricky thing about players like Wentz is that they can rise to the challenge, so Pittsburgh needs to treat him like a threat, not a backup.
5. FIX THE CLOCK
They say a broken clock is correct twice a day. To call the Steelers’ run game a rushing attack would be falsely optimistic, with only three total rushes of 10 or more yards on the season. The team is averaging 2.8 yards per carry to date. They have 15 rushing first downs this season, ranking 27th in the league.
The run game issues have multiple repercussions. Not only does it make the offense one-dimensional, putting immense pressure on Rodgers, but the offense also fails to control the clock. In their three games this season, the Steelers have been well below the 50% mark on time of possession, leaving the defense on the field and giving opposing offenses more time and opportunity to score. This would be a great week to solve that issue, especially in front of a crowd of US and international Steelers fans who make this feel like a home game.
