The Steelers pulled the upset in Week 1 by beating the Bills, and from this victory the fans should come away with these five key takeaways.
Most, myself included, projected a talented Buffalo Bills team to defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first week of the NFL season. The first half of the game seemed to support that, but a surge in the second half paved the way for a win.
With the team 1-0 and heading into a Week 2 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders now, here are five key takeaways Pittsburgh should have from the Week 1 win.
Steelers offensive line is an issue
Much has been said about the offensive line heading into the season. The offseason saw a huge exodus of stalwart names, and the replacements weren’t exactly elite players. The only returning starter from last season is Chukwuma Okorafor and injuries/a lack of options forced a third- and fourth-round rookie to start against the Bills.
On top of all of this, this starting group has little experience playing alongside each other, further casting doubt as to how well they would be able to play.
To say the least, those fears were realized this week. In both the run and pass game, the Steelers’ offensive line failed to muster much of an impact. Najee Harris’s rookie debut was a quiet one as he struggled to find open lanes to move through. The passing game had to revert to quick passes as well in order to avoid constant pressure.
Overall, this group was the biggest area of weakness for the team. Based on the lack of options going forward, don’t be surprised to see this group continue to struggle until they get some more experience playing together.
Steelers paid the right man
One of the more stressful storylines of the offseason, the Steelers and T.J. Watt struggled to get through contract negotiations. While Watt was present at training camp, he limited himself in team drills until he got a new contract. This was resolved all of three days before the team faced the Bills, and there were legitimate questions as to how well Watt would be able to play with such a short turnaround from fully practicing to playing his first regular-season game.
As an elite player, though, Watt quickly put those questions to rest.
He came out and looked to be in midseason form, as he registered two sacks as well as a forced fumble on the day. These weren’t fluke numbers either. Watt was regularly beating his man around the edge and applying pressure. Even when he wasn’t, he was forcing holding calls that still moved the offense back (just ask Dion Dawkins).
Anyone doubting Watt’s value shouldn’t be at this point. He is easily one of the best defenders in the game and is well worth the elite money that was paid. Now, he figures to be a part of one of the strongest edge groups in the NFL this season.
The Steelers have seen Alex Highsmith take a leap in terms of development, and Melvin Ingram looks like a physical beast on the field. Altogether, this group should post some strong stats, and Watt will easily be a contender for defensive player of the year.
His deal was expensive, yes, but it seems well worth it at this point.
Steelers’ Pat Freiermuth isn’t the backup tight end
Rookie tight ends have one of the more difficult transitions to the NFL from the college game. Most need a season or two before hitting their stride.
Even a tight end as pro-ready as Pat Freiermuth was expected to need a year of developing before he could be counted on as a full-time starter. While Eric Ebron will still be seeing the field, the Steelers are evidently very comfortable with him seeing the field early and often.
While he only registered one catch for 24 yards, Freiermuth was a regular on the offense. He was stout as a blocker and ran a variety of routes. No, he isn’t the receiving threat Ebron is, but Freiermuth provides far more value as a complete tight end. If he is truly ready to take on the role of starter, he can and should be out snapping Ebron.
Based on his blocking tape from Week 1, there is little reason that Ebron should be seeing the field over Freiermuth right now.
That doesn’t mean Ebron can’t have a role on the offense. For starters, cutting him does nothing for the cap, so unless a team offers some draft compensation for him, he will remain on this roster. As well, he was an intriguing receiving threat last season, even if he was inconsistent in terms of catching the ball.
That all said, Freiermuth needs to be featured in this offense moving forward. He can throw a block when needed and has continued to build off his strong offseason.
Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger isn’t back, yet
There is a mixed feeling from the fanbase as to how Ben Roethlisberger will play this year. While many are hopeful for a strong season from the veteran, others look at the end of last season and surmise that he is done in this league.
Unfortunately, his play in Week 1 seemed to favor the latter as opposed to the former.
Now, Roethlisberger wasn’t horrible, but he struggled with pushing the ball deep and placing passes properly. Part of his issues stemmed from the offensive line playing as poorly as it did, but he also struggled with basic accuracy. His passes seemed to be a little off the mark all night. Specifically, with Najee Harris, Roethlisberger’s passes were regularly too high, and the rookie couldn’t bring them in.
Roethlisberger didn’t play for most of the preseason though, so he is likely still shaking some rust off as a result. While the deep pass wasn’t the focus, he did seem to have a good rapport with Chase Claypool, dropping a perfect 22-yard pass that the receiver went up and got.
As the line settles and, ideally, improves, Roethlisberger should get more into a groove, That said, he isn’t completely back yet, and this offense struggled to move without him.
Steelers secondary is versatile
The Steelers lost two starting cornerbacks this offseason in Mike Hilton and Steven Nelson, and they never really added any player to replace them. While a player like James Pierre shined on the outside and the team ended up trading for Ahkello Witherspoon late in the offseason, there were still major questions as to who would line up where in the secondary.
As it stands right now, it seems like the team is taking a committee approach to the job. The Steelers started with rookie Tre Norwood in the slot, before eventually letting Arthur Maulet take over, and finally, Pierre played on the outside and Cameron Sutton kicked inside.
While some of the players, such as Norwood, took some lumps, the secondary as a whole held up well. With so many moving pieces, it seems as though this team will be able to cover for their losses from last season with a variety of players.
Now, Witherspoon was out for this game as he was likely still learning the ropes of the defense, but when he eventually earns a helmet, it would seem likely that the team keeps Sutton in the slot more often. If an injury occurs, though, it is comforting knowing that the Steelers have options that can hold up well enough in the secondary.
While not perfect, this group played far better than they should have. They have the front seven to thank for dominating the Bills front, but this team has plenty of players in the secondary that can hold down a variety of roles moving forward.
While far from a perfect game, the Steelers found a way to move the ball and wear down the Bills in their Week 1 win. Moving forward, the team should look to build off its strengths and find a way to mitigate the ineffectiveness of the offensive line.
Keep these takeaways in mind as the team begins gearing up for their week two game against the Raiders.