Two historic franchises, Sunday Night Football in late October on the North Shore, and some stars lining up against each other. What a great matchup we have in store in Week 8 between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers.
The big storyline is Aaron Rodgers taking on his former team in the Packers and his protege at QB in Jordan Love, who spent the first few seasons of his career learning under Rodgers’ guidance. Rodgers has a shot at history Sunday night, too, with a chance to become one of a few QBs in NFL history to own a win against all 32 franchises.
This game is about more than just Rodgers, though. The Steelers need a bounce back after a disastrous performance defensively against the Bengals, and they need to right the ship in general to get back to their winning ways and regain their footing. The Packers will be a tough test, but Pittsburgh has the pieces in place.
There will be games within the game to watch. Make sure to keep an eye on key individual matchups in all three phases in the Steelers-Packers at Acrisure Stadium on Sunday Night Football. That’s the biggest thing.
Below are my four matchups to watch Sunday night.
STEELERS ILBS VS. PACKERS TE TUCKER KRAFT
This might not be the most attention-grabbing matchup to watch on Sunday night, but it will be a big one. It could go a long way toward determining the outcome of the game, too.
Tucker Kraft is emerging as a true star at the tight end position. He’s already hauled in 23 passes for 326 yards and four touchdowns on the season and is on pace to shatter his career highs in all three categories. He’s become a favorite target of quarterback Jordan Love and is an all-situations TE.
The Steelers have had issues covering tight ends this season. Payton Wilson and Patrick Queen have been rough in coverage, allowing a combined 49 receptions for 515 yards and four touchdowns so far, according to Pro Football Focus. Those numbers are pretty concerning, and now they’ll have their hands full with Kraft. The Steelers aren’t playing much dime anymore, so Wilson and Queen have to be better in coverage.
PACKERS WR ROMEO DOUBS VS. STEELERS CB JALEN RAMSEY
One week after getting torched by the Cincinnati Bengals in man coverage, the Steelers will likely run it back in man coverage against a deep Green Bay WR room. That should put Jalen Ramsey on Packers No. 1 receiver Romeo Doubs at times on Sunday night.
Doubs has been good for the Packers this season. He’s hauled in 24 passes for 306 yards and four touchdowns. He has three straight games with at least five receptions and 55 yards, consistently connecting with Love to form a strong duo. Now, they’ll try and carry that into a tough matchup — at least on paper — against the Steelers’ secondary.
Jalen Ramsey needs a major bounce-back game, especially after stating following the Bengals loss that he needs to play better. Now’s his chance to prove it. Lock down Doubs and make Love try to move the offense by connecting with rookie Matthew Golden and other young receivers. Take away the top option like you were acquired to do.
STEELERS OLB ALEX HIGHSMITH VS. PACKERS LT RASHEED WALKER
Once again, there’s going to be a lot of focus on T.J. Watt on the other side of the defense, and there will be a lot of eyes on Nick Herbig and how many snaps he receives this week. Quietly though, Alex Highsmith has a favorable matchup against Packers left tackle Rasheed Walker.
Highsmith has just three pressures since his return from injury, generating two against Cleveland and just one against Cincinnati. He needs to be better rushing the passer and get back to his early-season level of play. Of course, the Bengals got the ball out quickly last week, but Highsmith should have more opportunities this week rushing Love.
Walker has given up 18 pressures this season and three sacks, including a sack in three of the last four weeks. Highsmith should have an opportunity to get after Love and create some splash. In 2023, Highsmith had four pressures against the Packers and Walker. He needs to replicate that performance again.
PACKERS DC JEFF HAFLEY VS. STEELERS OC ARTHUR SMITH
The Packers have one of the NFL’s stingiest defenses through the first seven weeks of the season. They aren’t allowing much splash at all, and they are holding teams to just 288.5 yards per game. That includes just 76.5 rushing yards per game. The Packers are a fundamentally sound group under coordinator Jeff Hafley, and they don’t make many mistakes.
As head coach Mike Tomlin stated Tuesday, teams have to mount 10-plus play drives to score on the Packers, and that can be draining. Splash isn’t going to be there consistently. That will make it challenging for Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who has enjoyed some splash in recent weeks.
It will be a battle of the minds between the two play callers Sunday night. Smith will need a plan to slow Micah Parsons, which will put the ball back in Hafley’s court to try and scheme up pressure against Aaron Rodgers. With the way the Steelers like to utilize 12 and 13 personnel, it will be a challenge for Hafley to find that sweet spot between defending the pass and having enough big bodies to defend the run.
It will be a fascinating game of cat and mouse between two experienced coordinators. It will be fun to watch.
