James Harrison is feeling the Black and Gold again. So much so that he donned as much Pittsburgh Steelers attire as he could find for the latest episode of his Deebo and Joe podcast. Fresh off a 23-9 win over the Cleveland Browns, Harrison sees the pieces coming together.
“The Pittsburgh Steelers offense. Listen, they did a better job of running blocking,” Harrison told former Steelers CB Joe Haden. “They protect the quarterback. Zero sacks. Myles Garrett only had two tackles, no pressures, no hits on the quarterback. And that is from our tackle, who has been having a down season. He has gave up the most sacks out of any tackle in the league. But he didn’t get none to [Garrett].”
Harrison’s talking about left tackle Broderick Jones, much maligned over his career for not looking like the first-round pick he was billed to be. Jones received plenty of help from the rest of the offense Sunday, be it moving the launch point, having chip help, or the line sliding his way. An effective running game also played a role. But Jones deserves credit for being the point man in keeping Garrett at bay as Garrett watched the Steelers’ pass rush eat instead.
The passing game made its plays, too. Veteran WR DK Metcalf has found the end zone in his last four games, while TE Darnell Washington had a career game, including getting loose for a 36-yard catch on the first play.
“You done gave Aaron more targets,” Harrison said. “Aaron was greatly effective. You talking [21 of 30], two touchdowns. Here we go, Steelers, here we go.”
Rodgers has thrown five touchdowns to just one interception in his last three games. His adjusted net yards per passing attempt number, regarded as a key metric to capture quarterback play, sits at 6.95. Anything above 6.2 is considered a positive, and Rodgers’ figure is more than a full point above last year. His figure ranks 12th league-wide, ranking ahead of Jalen Hurts, Jayden Daniels, and Justin Herbert.
Harrison showed the Steelers’ surging defense plenty of support, too.
“The defense now. Six sacks. We played the run better.”
Pittsburgh’s defense is up to 17 sacks over its last three games. That’s tied for the second-most the Steelers have ever recorded over a three-game span, only trailing the 18 registered in 1982. Strong run defense has allowed the Steelers’ pass rush to pin their ears back and expand the play-calling menu, allowing for more creative and chaotic schemes.
Sitting at 4-1 with a strong AFC North lead, the Steelers can expand it with a win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday night. Historically, this is a situation Mike Tomlin has struggled with, but the Steelers are turning the tide of expectations this year. A division leader, instead of being in the hunt. Double-digit wins instead of playing for above .500. And turning Harrison back into a die-hard fan.
