The New England Patriots return home on Sunday to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in their home opener. The game is a rematch from last year’s regular season, but there has been substantial change particularly for the Steelers since the two franchise’s last crossed paths in 2025.
In order to find out more about the Patriots’ Week 2 opponent, we spoke with Ryland Bickley of Pats Pulpit’s sister site Behind the Steel Curtain, the SB Nation community for all things Steelers.
What team-wide effect has
Mike McCarthy thus far at head coach? How has his relationship with Aaron Rodgers evolved since the last time they were together?
After nearly 20 years under the CEO-like leadership of Mike Tomlin, a lot is different under McCarthy, from big, on-field changes to things as simple as no longer providing an injury report in a postgame opening statement.
Obviously, it’s still far too early in the new Mike’s tenure to make sweeping judgements on what has been different, but some things that have been noticeable include assistant coach hires such as Patrick Graham, who has been a breath of fresh air on defense (more on that later), and McCarthy being more hands-on in player development, notably at quarterback.
Of course, McCarthy is the Steelers’ offensive play caller, unlike Tomlin, and his offense has looked different from past Steelers teams even if it wasn’t reflected on the scoreboard last week. For starters, there’s already been a bigger emphasis on middle of the field passing, and the run game is more varied than Arthur Smith’s zone-heavy philosophy last year.
As for the Rodgers/McCarthy relationship, I can’t speak too much to that as I’m not actually in the Steelers building. But while Rodgers is still no stranger to bizarre headlines, a common theme of his time with the Steelers has been teammates singing the praises of their veteran quarterback. He’s well-liked in that locker room and seems to only be playing because he still enjoys it.
On the field, Rodgers did look a lot better than his 2025 self last week, pushing the ball downfield more and being willing to extend plays when needed. The big question this week is if that trend will continue, or if Week 1 was an outlier due to Rodgers facing an undermanned Falcons pass rush.
The Steelers’ receivers missed out on some downfield opportunities last week. Are you concerned there may be a long-term issue, or was it just Week 1 rust?
Yes and no. Some Week 1 rust was always expected, especially as Rodgers has always been a quarterback who relies heavily on strong chemistry with his pass catchers.
That said, despite being built like a jump-ball receiver, DK Metcalf plays more like a pure speed threat. Last week was an especially bad game for him, but his inability to come down with the ball on some tougher grabs wasn’t exactly a surprise, either. Still, he had a brutal, clean drop on an in-breaker that would’ve gone for a chunk play or even a score last week, and I’d expect him to make the catch in the future.
Another interesting name is Roman Wilson, a third-round pick in 2024, who looks to be finally making an impact on offense this year as Pittsburgh’s WR3 to open the season. He and Rodgers almost connected on a few plays, but “almost” has been a common theme of Wilson’s NFL career thus far. To sum up my point, the Steelers’ offense showed some big-play potential last week, but it’s still hard to tell if that will actually lead to anything.
I’ll add that a pleasant surprise last week was Michael Pittman Jr., who’s hardly a burner at this point in his career, but showed off some good chemistry with Rodgers and a knack for finding soft spots in defenses for big gains. [Editor’s note: Pittman Jr. has been ruled out for the game]
Have the Steelers’ offensive line and secondary changes been a net positive or negative?
Not to sound like a broken record, but it’s still too early to tell. The offensive line had a rough preseason and some struggles against Atlanta last week, but first-round right tackle Max Iheanachor is still working his way into the lineup and top starters Troy Fautanu (left tackle) and Mason McCormick (left guard) have both switched from playing on the right side last year. That’s led to some understandable growing pains.
The group has plenty of talent, especially with Zach Frazier remaining a stalwart at center, but the Patriots should be able to see some success against a weaker right side of the line. The run game was especially rough last week, with the Steelers averaging -1.14 yards before contact per carry — worst in the NFL.
As for the secondary, the cornerback room, with Jamel Dean and Asante Samuel Jr. starting on the outside, held up well against the Falcons last week despite the absence of Joey Porter Jr. (also not expected to suit up against New England). Jalen Ramsey has definitely lost a step but remains an above-average defender, playing in the slot in nickel defense and rotating to safety in base. Jaquan Brisker recorded an interception last week at safety and made an impact near the line of scrimmage.
The problem, of course, is that the success came against Cooper Rush at quarterback; Drake Maye will be a much bigger issue. While the cornerback room is solid, there’s a real lack of range at safety the Patriots could definitely exploit, and the Steelers are already thin at the position with DeShon Elliott on injured reserve.
How has Patrick Graham put his fingerprint on the Steelers’ defense? Do you think they stick to an all-zone approach vs Drake Maye?
Graham was running some hilariously complex sim pressures and coverages at times in the preseason, and actually simplified things once Week 1 hit. My take is that the Steelers realized they didn’t have to overcomplicate things to beat Cooper Rush last week, and guessed correctly. Instead, they sat back, let the defensive backs see things unfold in front of them in zone, and took advantage of some miscues on offense.
Against the Patriots, I’d expect more varied coverages, but even against Atlanta, a lot of what was classified as zone was match coverages, which have a lot in common with man concepts. Graham does like to play a lot of split-safety coverages, with a heavy dose of cover 4 last week, and I’d expect that to continue in Week 2.
Outside of the secondary, Graham is known for helping his inside linebackers succeed in his scheme, and that was on display in Week 1 with Payton Wilson playing one of the best games of his career after a rough 2025. The Steelers have a pair of highly-athletic off-ball linebackers in Wilson and Patrick Queen, and under Graham they’ve been looking a lot more comfortable.
Do you anticipate more blitzing from the Steelers against Drake Maye? If not, how do you feel about their ability to affect the quarterback rushing on only four?
To parrot my above answer, the Steelers’ defensive game plan was very Falcons-specific last week, and I’d expect Graham to mix things up against New England. Graham himself said more blitzes would be coming when asked about it by the media earlier this week.
Still, the Steelers are more capable than most teams at generating pressures with just four rushers. The team’s top three outside linebackers — T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig — are all fantastic players with varying skill sets, and Watt returned to form against the Falcons, winning the AFC Defensive Player of the Week award for Week 1. So far, Graham has done a great job rotating and finding unique usages for all three players, even giving Herbig some inside linebacker snaps at times against Atlanta.
Inside, Cam Heyward remains a force in his late 30s with a lethal bull rush. The recently-extended Keeanu Benton has a potent club move and has been growing as a pass rusher, with a career-best 5.5 sacks last season.
