Last week, the Pittsburgh Steelers snuck past the Atlanta Falcons in the season opener despite the Falcons playing a backup quarterback. A win is a win but this game didn't inspire confidence in this offense unless they can turn things around. This week, the Steelers go on the road to take on the New England Patriots who lost in Week One.
On paper, this looks like a win for the Steelers, but even with Mike McCarthy in charge, there's still plenty to worry about in Week Two.
Overconfidence
We are hoping the overconfidence that hung over the heads of the Steelers left with Mike Tomlin, we all have memories of Steelers teams squeaking past bad teams, getting full of themselves and then slip up the next week.
The Joey Porter Jr. drama
Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. is out this week with an odd
combo designation of the mysterious back injury and conditioning but we are convinced this is all performative and posturing by both sides. The hope is it doesn't become a distraction for the staff or any of the players.
Lack of a run game
Pittsburgh must establish the run game this week after failing to do so against the Falcons. This means Jalen Warren needs to hold onto the football, Rico Dowdle needs to run better and the offensive line must improve.
The Patriots are better than the Falcons
Make no mistake, despite what happened with the Patriots last week, they are a more talented and better-coached team than Atlanta. Aside from running back Bijan Robinson, there isn't a player on the Falcons who stands well ahead of their counterpart on the Patriots.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Steelers vs Patriots: Major causes for concern this week
