The Steelers’ offense left the door open for the Saints to make a comeback, but the defense did just enough for the team to escape Paris with a 16-10 win. That puts the Steelers’ record at 5-2, tied with the Browns atop the AFC North. Cleveland currently holds the tiebreaker over Pittsburgh, but with Baltimore falling to Cincinnati today, the stage is set for the winner of Steelers-Browns next week to claim the division lead at the halfway point of the season.
I’m filling in for Ryland this week,
so the takeaways this week might have a slightly different tone, even if my fellow Read & React columnist and I tend to agree on a lot of our football philosophy.
Regardless, let’s get to the takeaways from this game.
1. Jaylen Warren is inevitable, but Rico Dowdle is claiming his stake in the RB committee
Through seven games, it’s apparent that Warren is the Steelers’ best and most consistent weapon on offense. He once again stuffed the stat sheet, racking up 101 yards on the ground on 18 carries (5.6 YPC) while adding 36 through the air on three catches. Warren has received at least 20 touches in four out of seven contests, and he’s paid off that commitment towards getting him the ball with performances of 179, 126, 188, and now 137 yards from scrimmage. The Steelers are 3-1 when Warren gets 20-plus touches, with the only loss coming against the Browns in a weird game where the Steelers looked like the better team in all but one disastrous second quarter. In games this season where Warren has 20 or more touches, the Steelers are averaging 34.6 points per game. In games where he has less than that magical number, Pittsburgh is averaging 16.3 points per game.
Now, sure, the small sample size makes those averages a bit noisy. After all, the Steelers got Warren the rock 21 times today, and yet they scored just 16 points — though 19, spiritually, if not for a Saints penalty that wiped away a Chris Boswell field goal late in the fourth quarter and let the Steelers kneel out the game instead. I’ll also acknowledge that merely getting Warren 20 touches alone doesn’t fullproof anything. The Browns game proves that.
But the idea does point to something most Steelers fans have come to understand: on a team that struggles to consistently produce explosive plays from the passing game, Warren serves as a spark plug for the Pittsburgh offense.
That’s why I suspect I was not alone yesterday in feeling a twinge of frustration every time Rico Dowdle was on the field instead of Warren.
But while fans might not like it, or at least not like when and where the Steelers choose to work Dowdle in, the Steelers have made it clear they don’t want to grind Warren to dust with overuse. In the four games where both running backs have been available, the Steelers have distributed the ball at a nearly 60-40 split to Warren (65 touches) and Dowdle (44). And if we are going to point “wins” when highlighting Warren’s touch total, it’s also worth noting that the Steelers are 3-1, too, in games where both running backs have been active this season.
And for what it’s worth, Dowdle has now put together back-to-back strong performances in the change-of-pace role since returning to the lineup. Last week, he averaged 5.7 yards on nine carries in his first game back from injury. On Sunday, Dowdle had undoubtedly his best game yet as a Steeler, totaling 86 yards from scrimmage with six catches and averaging 4.6 yards per carry. He’s also produced a run of 15-plus yards in consecutive games.
For as bad as Dowdle looked in the first two games of the season, it’s worth considering that not only have the Steelers changed the right side of their offensive line since then, but they’ve also changed how they’re calling the run game.
Through the first two weeks, Pittsburgh was calling zone concepts on roughly 60% of their runs, with a heavy skew (roughly 40%) towards outside zone concepts. That changed in Week 3, along with the right side of the line, and since then the Steelers have become a team that relies on power/gap schemes much more, especially duo concepts. Heading into Week 7, the Steelers’ season-long rate of zone-versus-gap schemes had reached a near 50-50 split, with duo being called on roughly 35% of their runs. That’s a dramatic shift, and one that better fits Dowdle’s skill set, and arguably Warren’s too.
Dowdle is starting like the sidekick to Warren we all hoped and envisioned he’d be when the Steelers acquired him this offseason. We may always be left wanting more Warren, but it’s probably in the best interest of both the player and the team for the Steelers to continue to keep this backfield at a roughly 60-40 split. Hopefully, Dowdle can continue to make plays, and McCarthy can get a better feel for when to pull Warren — ideally not in the red zone, Big Mike!
2. The Steelers’ defense bent, but didn’t break… this time
Coming into Week 7, the Steelers’ defense was allowing opposing teams an average of 204.3 passing yards a game. Some of that may have to do with the level of quarterbacks they’ve faced so far, but it certainly felt like Tyler Shough was dicing this team up in a way few quarterbacks have this season, on his way to 278 passing yards. Adding to that feeling was the length of New Orleans’ drives. The Saints possessed the ball just six times in this game, but four of those resulted in drives with at least eleven plays and lasting over five minutes.
The Steelers’ zone scheme seemingly had no answers for throws underneath, with the Saints’ running backs combining for 10 catches and 79 yards, and four separate players totaling at least 50 yards receiving. Despite the Steelers stonewalling the Saints’ rushing attack — 18 yards on 17 carries (1.1 YPC) — and setting them up with several third-and-longs, the Saints went 6-of-12 on third down and converted both fourth-down attempts they went for. New Orleans punted on their first drive of the game, and wouldn’t again until the Saints’ final possession of the fourth quarter.
And yet, only two Saints pass catchers averaged double-digit yards per catch, and Shough’s average yards per completion was 7.3. The Saints were able to nickel and dime Pittsburgh, but they lacked in explosive plays. Receiver Chris Olave came into the week as the second-leading receiver in terms of yardage, but was held to just 56 yards on six catches. New Orleans was able to move the ball, but they were only able to score twice, and just one of them was a touchdown. Credit, then, must go to the Steeler defense, which came up clutch in several big moments.
The Saints crossed the fifty-yard line on their first drive of the game, but linebacker Patrick Queen ended their drive when he nearly came away with an interception on a third-and-long.
On the Saints’ next possession, they drove the ball to the red zone, but their drive came to a screeching halt on a second-quarter sack from T.J. Watt that was initially ruled a forced fumble and recovery before being overturned on review. While the overruling was questionable at best, it forced the Saints into a third-and-long that the Steelers were able to stifle and force New Orleans to settle for a field goal.
The Saints would tie the game up on their third possession, but a Pittsburgh field goal at the end of the half gave the Steelers a 13-10 lead. New Orleans got the ball coming out of the break, and Shough came out of the locker room hot, driving the Saints all the way to the Pittsburgh 10. The Saints looked poised to steal the lead from Pittsburgh, but linebacker Payton Wilson paid off what his teammate Queen couldn’t quite manage to do earlier in the game.
After a Chris Boswell field goal put the Steelers up 16-10 at the end of the third quarter, the Saints’ next drive was nearing field goal range when T.J. Watt and Keeanu Benton teamed up to stuff running back Alvin Kamara for a five-yard loss on a second-and-five. The Saints would then commit a penalty that backed them up further and Shough would end up checking down a pass down to Kamara on a 3rd-and 14 that was stopped by Queen and Jalen Ramsey. That set the Saints up for a 52-yard field goal attempt.
They missed.
The Steelers offense would go three-and-out immediately after, though, leaving the Saints an opportunity with just over seven minutes left in the game to steal the game away with a touchdown drive. Shough would complete a 14-yard pass to Chris Olave to open the drive, but two incompletions set them up for 3rd-and-10 from the New Orleans 40-yard line.
That’s when Queen called game.
The Saints were forced to punt and never got the ball back.
It wasn’t a pretty game, but it was the perfect example of defensive coordinator Patrick Graham’s bend-but-don’t-break style setting the team up for success. The Steelers won the turnover battle and very nearly had two more to their total. Two timely sacks played their part in altering the game. And the Steelers didn’t allow the Saints’ best player — Olave — to get behind the secondary or create explosives.
Will this defense hold up against better offenses/quarterbacks? That remains to be seen. But it was enough Sunday.
3. Rodgers is both the best quarterback the team has had during the 2020s…and a cap on their ceiling
Ryland likes to say this weekly column is home to both analysis and overreactions, and I’m fairly certain this takeaway is the one most likely to get some pushback in the comments. If you don’t like it, then YOU try telling Ryland he hasn’t earned a well-deserved day off, or start your own column. I’m here to speak my truth.
I won’t drag this one out too long — I do still like to be mostly optimistic following a win — but that truth is that the Aaron Rodgers game-day experience is not a particularly fun one most weeks for me. Sure, I can respect that he is one of the greatest to ever do it since I’ve been watching this game. But the continual farewell-tour praise from whichever announcing team is on the job for the week is becoming increasingly hard to reconcile with the absolute rollercoaster product Rodgers is putting on the field on a down-to-down basis.
At this stage in Rodgers’ career, he’s capable of a few flashes a game that can get football fans nostalgic for his MVP-level performances during the 2010s, and even as recently as 2020 and 2021. I won’t deny that this completion to DK Metcalf was not only sick, but it was one of the most crucial plays of the game.
And this fade to Darnell Washington for the touchdown was another impressive display:
And of course, he all but sealed the game with his lone, non-kneeling rushing attempt:
But as awesome as those highlights are, it’s hard to come away from this game feeling like the offense performed well as a whole. As I mentioned at the beginning of this column, the Steelers really would have scored 19 points if not for a stupid Saints penalty that wiped out a late Boswell field goal and let Pittsburgh salt the game away. That isn’t exactly high-powered offense. It would have beaten the score of only one other winning team this week — the undefeated Vikings mustered just 16 against the Colts — and would be above the season average of just four teams.
After starting 10-of-14, Rodgers finished 19-of-30. Of those completions, 10 were for gains under seven yards. Sure, you could say there was a bad drop by Pat Freiermuth in that mix, but it doesn’t change the up-and-down nature of how Rodgers now navigates a game. For every back-shoulder fade Rodgers throws that ends up like the Washington touchdown, there are a handful we can point to in nearly every game that were clearly futile attempts. Even with the amount of praise that broadcasters Kurt Warner and Jason Kelce were lauding Rodgers with, there were a few off-target vertical attempts that had them commenting on how uncatchable they were.
Another sequence at the end of the first half highlights some of my frustrations. With no timeouts and roughly 30 seconds left in the half, Rodgers checked it down in the middle of the field to Brandon Smith, of all receivers. Smith got only four yards, and with the completion coming in the middle of the field, the offense had to hurry to get another play off. The Steelers hike the ball, and it becomes immediately clear that no one is getting open, but Rodgers starts to scramble forward and gets sacked, causing a scramble drill for the field goal unit. Rodgers needs to know that not only was the throw to Smith less than ideal, but he absolutely couldn’t afford to take a sack there. Blame the offensive line if you want, but having watched Rodgers dirt several balls this game at receivers’ feet while under less pressure, I tend to think that’s a result he should have been able to avoid. The Steelers were lucky to come away with points.
Most of that is fixable, at least in theory. My main concern is that while Rodgers is proving adequate enough to squeak out some close wins during the regular season, creating explosive plays has now become just as important as winning the turnover battle in determining game outcomes. Once you reach the pressure cooker that is the NFL playoffs, that only becomes even more true. Teams can win playing the way the Steelers are, but it shrinks their margin for error. The Saints are not a good defense and have been giving up explosive plays and points in bunches. The Steelers managed just a few such passes and only scored one touchdown today. They scored just one touchdown in regulation against a similarly maligned Tampa Bay defense, needing overtime to get a second touchdown. As impressive as the run game is becoming, the Steelers aren’t scoring enough touchdowns.
To me, a lot of that rests at the feet of the quarterback. Now go ahead and yell at me in the comments.
4. The Steelers won despite themselves
Ryland used this last week, and I think it bears repeating again this week. There was the aforementioned field goal fire drill that was more stressful than it needed to be. But that same drive was exacerbated by a stupid penalty that wiped out an explosive play on the Saints’ side of the field. Germie Bernard caught a ball and ran for a 20-yard gain to the New Orleans 14-yard line, but overzealous Mason McCormick jumped on the pile after the play was over, drawing a personal foul that backed up the Steelers to the 29-yard line with 54 seconds left in the half.
The Steelers also made the red zone four times but only came away with one touchdown.
And then there was the touchdown they surrendered on fourth-and-goal after an inspiring three-down stand at the goal line. As impressive as the previous three plays were, the uncontested quick out to Devaugh Velee was simply too easy.
The Steelers feel like they’re starting to round a corner in some respects, but mistakes like these seem to keep popping up. The Steelers are already squeaking by in the margins, and if they don’t find a way to start avoiding some of these errors, it will catch up with them at some point.
5. Odds and ends
- Steelers fans are aware by now that Cam Heyward is a master at swatting down the ball at the line of scrimmage. But I think it’s cool how that trait is seemingly being passed down to the younger Steelers. Keeanu Benton had one early in the game, and then Heyward and Yahya Black had back-to-back swat downs on the Saints’ final possession, leading up to the Queen sack.
- The international game broadcast crew has been tough this year. At one point, I believe Kurt Warner called Jaylen Warren “Tyler Warren,” and there were a few other times when they misidentified a player — I believe they mistook Brandon Smith for Germie Bernard at one point — or stumbled over a name pronunciation. It’s a tough gig, but still a tough showing.
- That said, I did enjoy Kurt Warner verbally grimacing at the mention of the Terrible Towel, and later making a forlorn comparison on a toe-drag catch to the Santonio Holmes touchdown from the Super Bowl he lost. At least he’s a good sport.
- This might have been a “me problem” because I was watching the game via NFL Network on the NFL App, but I have had more than enough of the Chad Ochocinco Adidas shoe commercial where he growls after shouting out Rome Odunze’s name and then proclaims, “And me? I GOTTA be the dragon,” or whatever the heck he said. They played it every commercial break, sometimes twice a break. Nails on a chalkboard stuff.
- Shout out to Steelers Nation for packing the stadium. I know the Steelers are the best-traveled fanbase with roots everywhere, but it’s still a source of pride when you’re the “away team” on one of these international games, and you draw more fans than the market that’s supposed to belong to the other team.
- The Steelers may not be a perfect team, but they’ve won the turnover battle two straight weeks and have yet to have more turnovers than their opponent in a game this season
- The Steelers’ six-offensive-lineman formation returned for a handful of plays this week. After being a staple of Arthur Smith’s game plans last year, the Steelers have largely avoided it this season. I’m looking forward to going back to the All-22 when it’s released to see how effective it was and if Mike McCarthy added any interesting wrinkles. I’m curious if we’ll see it more often moving forward, or if this was simply a matchup-dependent move.
- Safety Deshon Elliott returned from injury and played 19 defensive snaps. While I didn’t really notice him on the broadcast, he made one tackle, and PFF tagged him with surrendering a 24-yard catch on his lone target. Yet another element of this game I’m hoping to reexamine with the All-22.
- Lastly, I want to get the All-22 on the Steelers defensive goal-line stand that ultimately surrendered the fourth-down touchdown pass. I believe Gabe Rubio was out there on the three previous plays and am curious how much he contributed to the run stuffs.
What are your takeaways from Steelers vs. Saints? Agree/disagree with the ones above? Join the Behind the Steel Curtain community and let us know in the comments!
