What we learned from Steelers' astonishing Week 7 win vs. the NY Jets

Well, I don't know about you but I did not see this coming. The Steelers offense scored thirty-seven points against the New York Jets defense, which, at the time of this discussion is ranked one spot ahead of our defense. I figured we would score some points, but not thirty-seven points.

The offense was efficient, save for some drives that either stalled or resulted in punts, but, for the most part, we witnessed something that we have not witnessed in quite some time, which is this: an offense that can outscore the opposing offense and an offense that can score points against a good defense.

With that in mind, let's continue our discussion about the offensive side of the ball.

Steelers offense unleashed a barrage against the Jets defense unlike anything we have seen in a long time

Let's be honest here. Scoring thirty-seven points is not necessarily an offensive explosion, but, for us, it was, and it was the type of scoring output that we have not seen since week eleven of the 2021 season—a losing effort, by the way.

To put it another way, we have not scored at least thirty-seven points in approximately three seasons. Think about that for a minute. Some teams score at least thirty points several times in one season, but the Steelers offense has not enjoyed the kind of performance we saw against the Jets in what seems like an eternity,

I used the term astonishing for a reason. if you look up astonishing in the dictionary, it means exactly what I was feeling while watching the game, a feeling of great surprise or wonder. Honestly, I was surprised. I was pleasantly surprised, as it turned out.

I was surprised that Russell Wilson played as well as he did considering that he made his first start on the heels of a calf injury. I figured he would be 'rusty' and he was for the first few drives, but when we came out for the third quarter, the 'flood gates' opened and the scoring ensued.

Wilson finished the game with an impressive stat line. Throwing for two TDs was a good sign for him and for us. What I was impressed with the most was the fact that he did not turn the ball over via the interception. It's only one game, obviously, but I'll take that type of stat line any day of the week.

The running game was efficient as well. Led by Najee Harris, who had a 'tick' over one hundred yards for the game. The Steelers offense ended up with a 'shade' under one hundred and fifty yards on the ground. Without doing a whole bunch of research, when was the last time the offense generated over four hundred yards?

Let's see what we learned on the defensive side of the ball.

Steelers defense looked shaky at the outset but pitched a shutout in the second half

Things looked rather bleak in the first half. The Steelers defense seemingly had no answer for the Jets offense. We found ourselves down by nine points and it looked to me like we would be playing from behind for the whole game.

Fortunately, we turned an INT by Beanie Bishop Jr. into seven points to get to within two points by halftime. Once the third quarter rolled around, the defense put the clamps on the Jets offense and the result was a dominant second-half performance that allowed the offense to get on track and take over the game.

That is the epitome of complimentary football, something we have not consistently seen this year, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. We saw it against the Jets and it was refreshing to see. It was also necessary to see on many levels.

The fact that the defense did not allow the Jets running game to get going made them one-dimensional. Typically, when that happens, you end up winning the game and that's exactly how things transpired. Whatever adjustments were made at halftime worked. The Jets offense looked nothing like the offense we saw in the first half.

Let's see what else we learned.

Steelers gambled on Russell Wilson and that gamble seems to have paid off at least for one game

As I have stated numerous times during our many discussions, I am a Mike Tomlin supporter, but I am not a Mike Tomlin apologist. I have no problem giving credit where credit is due. Make no mistake, the decision to start Wilson over Justin Fields was risky.

It was risky from the standpoint that we were a four-win football team with Fields as the starting quarterback. It would have been easy for Tomlin to stick with Fields citing the fact that we were two games above 'five hundred' with him as the starter.

Tomlin was not forced to make the change at quarterback, but he did and it paid dividens, at least in the game against the Jets. Will Wilson be able to replicate the performance we witnessed down the stretch? That's anyone's guess.

I firmly believe that Tomlin went to Wilson for two simple reasons: Wilson is more experienced than Fields and he is a better quarterback at this stage than Fields. While Fields has better arm strength than Wilson, Wilson is a better 'all-around' quarterback.

Again, it's only one game, but Tomlin may have set the 2024 Steelers on a path to victory that we have not experienced in quite some time. I know that sounds like an overreaction and perhaps it is, but based on the fact that we beat a very good football at home in primetime with a 'new' starting quarterback, it may prove to be one of Tomlin's shrewdest decisions of his head coaching career.

Overreaction, you ask. Again, perhaps it is, but if you're like me, mid-fifties, have been a fan since the 1970s, suffered through the decade of the 1980s, and can't believe that we haven't won a Super Bowl since 2008, this is nothing short of astonishing.