Tonight, the Cleveland Browns are at home as they take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 4. To help preview a few topics from the Steelers’ perspective, we reached out to Ryland Bickley from Behind the Steel Curtain and exchanged five questions with him.
Chris: “Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers’ offense didn’t look too sharp the first two games, but they exploded with big plays against the ‘improved’ Bengals’ defense. Is that sustainable, or do you think that might have been a one-week wonder?”
Ryland:
“I’m still not sure how I feel about this Steelers offense. The tape against the Patriots in Week 2 was genuinely awful. But the team’s explosion against the Bengals on Sunday wasn’t entirely unexpected as I actually thought the Steelers showed a lot of unrealized potential in Week 1’s win over the hapless Falcons.
Aaron Rodgers definitely isn’t his old MVP-caliber self, but he can sling it when he feels comfortable in the pocket — something the Steelers achieved last week with some offensive line personnel changes (more on that later). That jumpstarted a run game led by the always-underrated Jaylen Warren, and Rodgers actually started pushing the ball downfield, something he’s only achieved inconsistently during his time in Pittsburgh.
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Pittsburgh’s pass catching group is middling at best, but there’s still a nice mix of upside and reliability in the skill sets of DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard, Roman Wilson, Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington. It’s been an up and down year, but if Metcalf can start to look anything like a WR1 again, the Steelers offense can take an even bigger step forward.
Ultimately, with the offensive line now starting to show signs of long-term improvement, I wouldn’t be surprised if the rest of the offense starts to take strides forward as well. But given the highs and lows of the season thus far, your guess is as good as mine if those improvements versus the Bengals stick around.”
Chris: “What do you view as the Steelers’ biggest weakness on defense right now?”
Ryland: “Pittsburgh has dealt with some inconsistencies at the inside linebacker position in recent seasons, but that group is largely trending upwards under the tutelage of new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.
I’d put the biggest weakness at safety right now, where the Steelers are still missing starter DeShon Elliott on injured reserve. Jaquan Brisker and Rayshawn Jenkins have been an acceptable duo through three weeks, but both, especially the latter, lack free safety ability. Both are capable when coming downhill, but there’s a lack of ideal range on the back end of the defense.
Pittsburgh has countered these depth issues by having Jalen Ramsey rotate to safety when he’s not playing nickel corner, but Ramsey hasn’t been a perfect fit at the position himself. And if he plays against Cleveland, it’ll be with a broken wrist.”
Chris: “Which of the Steelers’ 2026 draft picks has the best chance of making an immediate impact in Week 4?”
Ryland: “After a fantastic debut last week, there’s no answer here other than first-round right tackle Max Iheanachor.
The rookie took over for Dylan Cook last week and never looked back, making a big impact in the run game as well as pass protection. His athleticism and effort immediately stood out.
I’d still expect some growing pains this early in his career, but Iheanachor has looked remarkably pro-ready despite starting his football journey later in life.”
Chris: “Tell us about one player who Browns fans may not have heard of, but who could have an impact on this Sunday’s game.”
Ryland: “While Iheanachor, the first-round pick in his first career start, took up most of the offensive line headlines for the Steelers last week, veteran right guard Brock Hoffman was also elevated to the starting lineup and played a massive role in revitalizing the Pittsburgh run game and minimizing Dexter Lawrence’s impact on Sunday.
Hoffman is a tough, physical interior lineman who was a breath of fresh air after an up-and-down start to the season from former starter Spencer Anderson. But like Iheanachor, I’m interested to see if Hoffman can maintain his hot start to the season. ”
Chris: “The Browns are underdogs against the Steelers on Sunday (Browns +2.5 as of this question, per FanDuel). Who would you pick to win the game?”
Ryland: “I have the Steelers winning this game 17-13 in ugly, Thursday Night Football fashion — but I say that with very little confidence. I’m well aware that the Browns have historically won these short-week games when at home. Still, I think the Steelers’ head coaching change to Mike McCarthy, who seems to emphasize rest more, could help Pittsburgh break that streak.
Beyond that, while I’m bullish on the young group of talent the Browns have built up on offense in recent seasons, Deshaun Watson’s presence at quarterback and some offensive line injuries for Cleveland — not to mention no Myles Garrett on the other side of the ball — has this looking like a somewhat favorable matchup for Pittsburgh.”
Thanks again to Ryland for taking the time to answer my questions.
