Behind the Steel Curtain
The Steelers suffered their first loss of the season on Sunday in a frustrating performance against the Seahawks in Week 2. The sky isn’t falling just yet, but there are still plenty of takeaways to be had.
Believe it or not, some things improved for the Steelers from Week 1 to Week 2, including the run game.
Pittsburgh was still far from perfect in that phase, with just 72 team rushing yards on the ground and an underwhelming 3.4 yards per carry. But it was an improvement from last week’s 53 rushing yards with a 2.7-yard average.
Baby steps, right?
While the Steelers’ offensive line did look better as a whole against the Seahawks in both the run and pass game, the increase in carries for Jaylen Warren was also a plus.
While his yards per carry weren’t anything to write home about, Warren had five rushing first downs on second- or third-and-shorts. For a team that’s struggled so much in short yardage recently, it was especially good to see.
Despite just 48 yards on the ground, his hard-nosed running style, burst, and contact balance were a clear upgrade over Kenneth Gainwell, who actually out-snapped Warren in Week 1.
Gainwell’s receiving ability was likely one of the main reasons why the Steelers were interested in him this offseason, but Warren outshined the former Eagle in that part of the offense as well. Warren added another 86 yards off of receptions, including an entertaining pinball-esque catch and run that put the Steelers in great position for a go-ahead score (spoiler alert: they never scored).
He also kept Najee Harris’ signature move alive with a run-after-catch hurdle in the first quarter.
Yeah, this guy is pretty good at football. Maybe he should be treated more like a lead running back going forward.
On an offense struggling to find consistent playmakers, Warren looks the part. Rotating running backs is the name of the game in the modern NFL, but the Steelers can do a bit better than just 18 touches for No. 30. The team’s current situation on offense demands it.
The Pittsburgh defense has been flat-out poor to start the season. A group that looked elite on paper is currently the fourth-worst in the NFL in points per game through two weeks pre-Monday Night Football.
Despite giving up another 30-plus points in Week 2 (a certain kickoff failure contributed as well, to be fair), the Steelers defense did show a bit of promise against the Seahawks. But it felt like every time they’d get the Seahawks behind the chains, Seattle would make a big third-down conversion and prolong the drive.
And a lot of those conversions looked eerily similar: right through the heart of the Pittsburgh defense.
Per Next Gen Stats, Darnold was a near-perfect 13/14 for 169 yards and a touchdown when targeting the middle of the field. (Shoutout to the user who commented...
