Many people didn’t expect much out of the Pittsburgh Steelers going into this season. While they made a lot of moves during the offseason, they still had plenty of doubters. However, through the first four games of the year, they’re 3-1 and on top of the AFC North. They haven’t been perfect, but the Steelers have done enough to win games. Not that analyst Jason McIntyre is impressed by what he has seen.
“If we’re being honest, luck is the real MVP for the Steelers,” McIntyre said Thursday on FS1’s The Herd. “They got lucky that the Jets fumbled that kickoff when the Jets were dominating that game. They got lucky against the Patriots with five turnovers. And they got lucky to face Carson Wentz.
“Here are the quarterbacks. Steelers have beaten Justin Fields, they lost to Sam Darnold, they beat second-year quarterback Drake Maye, and they beat Carson Wentz.”
Have the Steelers played one of the best teams in the league yet? No, but that’s not their fault. They don’t make their schedule, nor can they control their opponents’ injuries. All the Steelers can do is play the teams in front of them and do their best to win.
To say that the Steelers are 3-1 because they’re lucky feels simplistic if not unfair. The Jets weren’t dominating the Steelers. It was a back-and-forth game, and they were only down by two points before New York fumbled on a kickoff. They still had to score a touchdown to take the lead after that.
Against the Patriots, the Steelers made it a priority to try to force fumbles. They knew that was an area they could exploit. Is their defense forcing so many turnovers sustainable? No, but that’s partly because other teams don’t struggle as much with ball security as the Patriots.
Maybe luck has factored into the Steelers’ games, but that could likely be said about any NFL team. There are actual reasons to criticize them, such as their inconsistency on offense and defense. Mike Tomlin’s Steelers are often opportunistic. They’ll often find themselves in close games, and one or two plays can be the difference between winning and losing. We’ll see if they continue to get “lucky.”
