After two straight games of the Pittsburgh Steelers' defense performing at its worst, the NFL schedule gifted the franchise a date with the most effective and efficient offense in the NFL, owned by the unlikely Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts are 7-1, on top of the NFL mountain, and it’s in large part because of Jonathan Taylor, who is playing at near MVP levels, even if he might end up settling for the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year. He’s run for 850 yards and 12 touchdowns halfway through the season.
Still, one of Pittsburgh’s small victories on Sunday night against Green Bay was stopping the run. The defense now ranks 18th in the NFL in yards and 10th in rushing touchdowns allowed. But, as Taylor emphasized this week, he’s not the only guy to worry about on the Colts’ offense.
Indianapolis Colts’ versatile offense presents multiple challenges for Pittsburgh Steelers' defense
“We have so many new weapons,” Taylor told Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer recently. “From Daniel Jones to Michael Pittman to Josh Downs to Alec Pierce, Tyler Warren. It’s so tough to defend us. You kind of have to pick your poison on every single play. Are you gonna defend the pass? Are you gonna run? What are you going to do?”
Pittsburgh has had its struggles against the run and the pass this season. But, in each of the past two losses, Pittsburgh allowed over 350 yards through the air, so those other pieces Taylor mentioned will play a significant role.
Pittsburgh ranks 30th in pass defense and has allowed the second-most first downs in the league. Meanwhile, Indianapolis comes in with the sixth-ranked passing offense, sixth-ranked rushing offense, and is the second-best at picking up first downs.
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For what it’s worth, the Colts lost the only game in which they turned the ball over more than once. To be fair, they’ve only turned the ball over four times this season, and three came in the Week 4 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The Steelers haven’t forced a takeaway since Week 4, but are 3-1 when forcing at least one.
Stats and rankings don’t determine outcomes, but Pittsburgh’s defense has to make an incredible turnaround to corral the Colts this week. Based on Mike Tomlin’s comments in his Tuesday press conference, suggesting that “dramatic changes aren’t needed” defensively, Steelers fans are right to be sceptical that they’ll see such change.
After all, Pittsburgh’s defense hasn’t shown the ability to pick the right poison for any offense they’ve faced this season, save for New England.