Steelers report card: Offense finally takes advantage of turnovers
It might’ve been a little close for comfort despite the end score, but the Steelers finally won comfortably. It was their first one of the season where fans weren’t biting their nails until the final buzzer. It was nice to finally sit back and enjoy the final minutes of the game rather than pumping up your blood pressure. Even though the end of the contest was calm, it wasn’t perfect for Pittsburgh.
Getting a win matters most, and the Steelers were able to bounce back from their two-game skid. The run game started to turn a corner, but some negatives were shown on the offensive side of the ball too.
Pittsburgh’s defense handled their business, but things got hairy at different parts of the matchup. At the end of the day, the Steelers won a battle they were supposed to.
Steelers offense report card grade: B-
Injuries continue to pile up for the Steelers along the offensive line. Zach Frazier is out week to week with an ankle injury. The good news is that he dodged a season-ending injury, but the bad news is that he will likely be out until after the bye week. That could affect the rushing attack for Pittsburgh, even though Najee Harris had one of his better games as a pro.
Justin Fields is a conundrum for the black and gold. Do they switch to Russell Wilson? Or do they stick with Fields? That is going to be a tough decision to make for Mike Tomlin. Fields didn’t have a good game throwing the ball. He does possess a great ability to run the ball that Wilson lacks. Fields’s dynamic ability as a runner could have saved his job for another week.
Steelers defense report card grade: B+
Even though they held the Raiders to 13 points on the day, the Steeler’s defense did not play perfect football. They were opportune and created takeaways, which their inconsistent offense finally took advantage of this time around. When you look at things as they stand, the defense took care of business against a beat-up Las Vegas offense, which is something they haven’t done in past weeks.
There should be some concern surrounding Pittsburgh’s defense with how they have performed in the past weeks. Even Aidan O’Connell was able to produce a respectable stat line as a starter against them. They need to show that they can slow teams down and not have a bunch of yards produced against them. They are counting too much on getting turnovers and that could bite them.
Steelers special teams report card grade: B
Nothing too much of note this time around for the special team’s unit, but that is a good thing. They were effective during their play, and that was led by Chris Boswell. He was perfect on the day, which has become a norm for the Steelers this season. Don’t take him for granted Pittsburgh, it is not as easy as he makes it seem. Boswell is playing very well and has been the offensive MVP thus far.
Jaylen Warren had a respectable kick return in this one, but it wasn’t anything mind-boggling. Corliss Waitman is someone who has continued to drop his punt average in terms of yards over the past couple of weeks. He has at least been steady and doesn’t shank a punt off to the side. Overall, an effective day on special teams for the Steelers.
