Thanks to an impressive win in Dublin, Ireland, over the Minnesota Viking in which they played as close to a complete game as they’ve come in recent years, things are really starting to look up for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
It also helps that the rest of the AFC North is ravaged with injuries and struggles, opening the door for the Black and Gold to make a major move forward in the rugged division.
Coming off the win in Dublin, and on top of major injuries to the Baltimore Ravens, many are starting to buy the Steelers’ chances in the AFC North. ESPN’s Chris Canty said Tuesday that the Steelers could go 6-0 in the division.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Louis Riddick became the latest to buy the Steelers within the AFC North.
“They are trending the right way. And I know that’s something that maybe some people don’t wanna really believe, but they are trending the right way,” Riddick said on Get Up, according to video via ESPN. “And why is that? Because the defense you saw this past weekend, they decided to say ‘Hey, you know what? You’re not running the football against us.’
“Everything started to go with that.”
Things didn’t look all that good at times earlier in the season, especially on the defensive side of the football. There also were some struggles offensively, particularly running the football. But the Steelers have shown signs in recent weeks of improvement and getting closer to what they envisioned all offseason as they built the team.
It all came together in Week 4 against the Vikings as the Steelers ran the football consistently, controlling the line of scrimmage offensively. The quick game with Aaron Rodgers through the air was outstanding, too, as the offense looked good for long stretches.
Defensively, the Steelers turned up the heat on quarterback Carson Wentz, getting to him time and time again. In the process, they stuffed the run, too, forcing Minnesota to become one-dimensional, which fed into the pass rush getting home over and over again.
There are still some things to clean up, particularly with communication in the secondary and more consistency in the run game. But the Steelers are very clearly trending in the right direction, are in control of the AFC North, and are playing some good football overall, fitting their style.
