It might only be Week 5 in the NFL regular season, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are entering their bye week and have a ton of momentum after defeating the Vikings in Dublin. The Steelers will now have time to get acclimated to being back in the States and have an extra week to prepare for their Week 6 showdown with the Browns.
With four games in the books and the Steelers sitting at 3-1 on the year (and leading the weakened AFC North), what have been the bright spots and the harsh truths that this team has faced so far?
Bright Spot: Aaron Rodgers has given Steelers a reliable QB
Fans might have been tired of the Aaron Rodgers drama over the offseason, but it's hard to argue that he's been an effective quarterback for the team a month into the season. In his first four games as a Steeler, Rodgers has thrown for 786 yards, eight touchdowns, and three interceptions.
Rodgers' performance has been even more impressive when you consider how bad the Steelers' o-line has been in September. He's been sacked nine times already, but that hasn't slowed him down when it comes to putting this team in a position to win.
So many times in the past few years, the Steelers have been "just a quarterback away" from being competitive. Rodgers gives them that quarterback, and even if it's just for this year, maybe the Steelers can finally make a run in the playoffs now that they have a competent signal-caller.
Harsh Truth: Broderick Jones doesn't appear to be the answer at LT
I just touched on how Rodgers has been sacked nine times through four games, and that's obviously not ideal. Rodgers is 41 years old (and will turn 42 in December) and coming off an Achilles tear less than two years ago, so it's important for him to get better protection than what he's gotten so far.
One of the biggest problems along the o-line has been former first-round pick Broderick Jones, who, unfortunately, has not gotten much better. Jones is responsible for four sacks allowed on Rodgers this year, and his 49.8 overall grade from PFF is quite the eye sore, especially with this being his third year in the league.
Fans were hoping to see improvements from Jones, but, at this point, we might have to accept that it won't be happening.
Bright Spot: Cam Heyward is still a baller
This year marks Cam Heyward's 17th NFL season, which is incredible. It's wild that he's been able to not only play for one team for that long, but to do so at a high level is absurd. You wouldn't know Heyward is 36 years old when watching him play, though.
Through four games this season, Heyward has one sack and 11 total pressures. He's also rated as the third-best defensive interior lineman in the league, which just adds to his impressive résumé so far this season.
The Steelers' defense has been up and down through the first month of the season, but it's been hard to find fault with Heyward. The guy has continued to age like a fine wine.
Harsh Truth: Secondary is decimated with injuries
Remember when I said that the Steelers' defense has been pretty hit and miss this year? Well, the secondary has been a big part of that. The unit has struggled to avoid the injury bug with DeShon Elliott, Jalen Ramsey, and Joey Porter Jr. all suffering injuries early on this season.
While Elliott's return proved to be massive for the team in their win over the Vikings, the team is still without Porter and could be without Ramsey for a few weeks. The good news is that there's hope here. If this group can get healthy and all be on the field at the same time, perhaps the back half of the season will see the Steelers' secondary improve.
Bright Spot: DK Metcalf has given offense a lethal weapon
The Steelers traded away George Pickens in the offseason, but DK Metcalf is filling the WR1 role well and doing it without the drama that Pickens provided. Metcalf had a great outing in Week 1 with 83 receiving yards, and then ran into a wall a bit when it came to yards in Weeks 2 and 3. He did manage to find the end zone in both of those games, however.
In Week 4, Metcalf exploded onto the scene, nabbing five catches for 126 yards and a trip into the end zone in Dublin. Performances like that one prove that the Steelers made the right call trading for Metcalf and also trading away Pickens. He's been clutch so far.