Each of the Pittsburgh Steelers' past three Super Bowl teams started the season 6-2 – in 1979, 2005 and 2007.
That’s a lot of history for first-year coach Mike McCarthy’s current squad to contend with as
it completes its bye week with the same record at the midseason mark.
The next nine games will tell a lot about whether this group can meaningfully contend as those ones did. Or whether it’s doomed to another one-and-done appearance in the NFL playoffs – or worse.
Here are the questions this Steelers team needs to answer if it wants to be among the AFC’s best at the end of 2026.
Is Jaylen Warren’s production sustainable?
The Steelers’ running game isn’t going to surprise anyone from this point forward. The fifth-year running back enters the bye ranked third in scrimmage yards with 998 and sixth in rushing yards at 704.
Defenses are sure to adjust to that kind of productivity and sell out to try to stop him to the degree that they can.
If Warren is still able to post 100-yard days consistently in the face of that focus, then we’ll know that the “bowling ball with teeth” – as teammate T.J. Watt described him after the Week 8 win against Cleveland – has taken a next step from being a guy who can take advantage of defenses to one they legitimately cannot stop.
We’ll also know that the Steelers’ offensive line has become the strength that GM Omar Khan was hoping it would be when he invested three first-round picks into it over the past four NFL draft cycles.
The metrics suggest it’s getting there. Pro Football Focus ranks Pittsburgh No. 5 in running blocking grade at 71.8 out of 100. Those guys also have to expect some adjustments, though, so it will be interesting to see how position coach James Campen’s group can handle them. In particular, keep an eye on rookie right tackle Max Iheanachor, who’s invigorated the group since getting his first start in Week 3.
Can Aaron Rodgers make defenses pay?
The future Hall of Fame quarterback has not been very efficient as a downfield passer, particularly during the current four-game winning streak during which the running game has taken the proverbial wheel on offense.
Part of the answer to the Warren question then becomes whether Rodgers can still do enough to keep defenses honest with his 43rd birthday looming on Dec. 2.
We’ve seen flashes that he can. He was nearly flawless in the fourth quarter and overtime of the Week 6 win against Tampa Bay.
His average depth of target (ADOT) was a startlingly inefficient 4.2 yards that day, but he got the ball out to Germie Bernard and DK Metcalf to make plays in space in a lightning-quick 2.27 seconds per play.
Bernard finished with 11 catches for 87 yards and the game-winning touchdown. Metcalf had 11 catches for 93 yards.
With Warren functionally taken out of the game as the Steelers looked to rally late, Rodgers simply ate the Buccaneers up at the margins by putting his guys in position to make plays after the catch.
He will probably need to do more of that. It also wouldn’t hurt to get injured receivers Michael Pittman Jr. and Roman Wilson back from injuries that have landed them on injured reserve.
In the three games with Pittman available, Rodgers’ ADOT was at least 10 yards, showing that he’s willing to be more aggressive when he has confidence in the three wide-receiver sets that McCarthy has traditionally leaned into as a play caller.
Will bend-don’t-break continue to work defensively?
Coordinator Patrick Graham has revitalized this Steelers defense by leaning into zone coverage schemes, taking away opposing running games and daring opponents to beat him with underneath passes by buttoning things up over the top.
Offenses have begun to take him up on that offer. New Orleans’ Tyler Shough and Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson have averaged 301 passing yards against the Steelers over the past two weeks. Moving the ball wasn’t necessarily their issue.
Shough short-circuited his team’s chances with a backbreaking red zone interception to start the second half in Paris. Watson, meanwhile, was forced to run for his life as the Pittsburgh pass rush got to him for eight sacks.
Looking at the second-half schedule, it’s questionable how many other quarterbacks might be able to avoid similar fatal mistakes. Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow will likely be a formidable test in the looming rematch against the Bengals on Nov. 15.
Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence could also cause some problems during a Monday night road trip to Florida in mid December.
As of now, though, the Steelers will likely avoid having to face Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts and may dodge Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson because of medical issues.
It’s a favorable setup for the rest of the regular season. If all goes well, then Graham will need to prove that the scheme can work against the best of the best come playoff time in January.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 3 questions that will make or break the second half of the Steelers season
