A Winning Formula: Three Defensive Must-Dos for the Steelers vs. Jaguars

The Pittsburgh Steelers defense has a tough draw today against Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars offense. It's certainly a fair fight as both sport their share of strengths and weaknesses, but it will take a crisp game from the defense once again to come away with the home victory.

What can be frustrating about the Jaguars in the 2023 season is that they are multi-dimensional and can win in various ways. In some wins the Jags leaned on their star quarterback, in others it was thanks to Travis Etienne in the ground game. Not even turnovers are an outlier as Jacksonville only has one clean game so far this season, which they won, of course, but stand at 5-2 with no more than two turnovers in any game.

The Jaguars are also fairly healthy on offense. Only wide receiver Zay Jones, who has missed most of the season with a nagging knee injury, is expected to miss the game. Lawrence and guard Brandon Scherff are both on the injury report, but will no doubt suit up.

Still, the Steelers have performed well defensively against solid offenses so far this season, Week 1 against San Francisco notwithstanding. The Steelers as a whole looked better coming out of the BYE Week with a strong showing against the Los Angeles Rams. While the Steelers still showed off some of their most concerning defensive weaknesses, they also did what was necessary to come away with a win, which is all you can ask for in the NFL, really.

One thing pointing in Pittsburgh's favor is being at home. Again, ignoring the Week 1 disaster, the Steelers' defense has been menacing at home with seven forced turnovers and 10 sacks in the two wins at Acrisure Stadium. It's not much to cling to as a trend, but it is fairly par for the course for the history of the team.

With these things in mind, these are the three keys the Steelers must emphasize against Jacksonville in the Week 8 matchup to come out on top.