Steelers ran their offense as planned
The biggest win of this new offense was the focus on the running game. The Steelers spent their offseason building up this unit. They added names like Isaac Seumalo, Broderick Jones, and Darnell Washington to their ranks in the hopes that it would allow the Steelers running backs to set the pace of the game.
Canada’s offense would sometimes rely on the backs as was outlined, but more often than not the passing game became more of the focus even when it wasn’t working. The Steelers set the tone early this week. While they had a few big passing plays, the offense ran through the ground game.
Najee Harris was brutal to the Bengals defense. He kept his legs moving and pushed the pile forward numerous times which was key in keeping the offense on schedule. Warren had a bit of a down game, but he had his usual blend of tough runs with a lot of burst. Both worked together in tandem to have an effective day.
This was my biggest hope for the group, and they achieved just that. Even when they were losing, the gameplan remained on pace and focused on the strength of this unit. The running backs were a huge reason for the win this week, and their effectiveness allowed the passing game to not be perfect.
It was a refreshing Steelers offense this week as they got their act together. Things weren’t perfect, but it was a better outing than what we had been expecting. I liked a lot of what I saw, but this team still has some work to do in order to remain a competitive team.