The Pittsburgh Steelers looked a lot more comfortable Sunday, and the difference showed up everywhere that mattered. After a rough third-down night against New England, they kept drives alive, piled up 411 yards and walked out of Week 3 with a 30-27 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
The cleaner version of the offense came after Mike McCarthy said he would trim things down following the Patriots game, when protection and execution fell apart. Against Cincinnati, that reset showed up in the details: more emphasis on the specifics and, perhaps, fewer personnel groups.
“A little bit more emphasis and more volume in the specifics would be the way I would define it. Maybe not as many personnel groups,” McCarthy said.
That kind of adjustment makes sense for a line still getting comfortable in McCarthy’s offense. Aaron Rodgers can find the right answer quickly, but that only matters if the protection sees the same picture. On Sunday, Pittsburgh looked more synchronized, though it was still just one game and the line has plenty left to prove.
The Steelers’ opening stretch set the tone. Rodgers hit Jaylen Warren for 30 yards, then connected with Roman Wilson on a 38-yard touchdown. On the next scoring drive, Wilson came through again with 17 yards on third-and-11, Michael Pittman Jr. picked up eight on third-and-6, and Ben Skowronek finished it off with a 23-yard touchdown after McCarthy sent him in motion.
Pittsburgh finally had enough successful snaps to build real drives, something it couldn’t do a week earlier when too many possessions died before the offense could get rolling.
McCarthy said the line and coaches later leaned into “back-burner type runs” once they identified what was working. He didn’t specify which runs changed, but Warren’s workload was clear enough.
With Rico Dowdle sidelined, Warren handled 17 carries for 127 yards and added 49 receiving yards. The Steelers kept going back to him, and he kept making defenders miss.
There was still some mess mixed in with the progress. Rodgers threw an interception, and Pittsburgh only managed a field goal after a muffed punt handed it the ball at Cincinnati’s 14. Those are the kinds of mistakes McCarthy will have to clean up quickly with a short week ahead.
He said the quarterbacks’ in-game communication improved as well. That matters now more than ever, because Thursday’s trip to Cleveland gives Pittsburgh only a few days to get ready for another difficult defensive front. The Browns beat the resurgent Panthers to move into a 3-way 2-1 tie in the AFC North, with the Ravens-Cowboys game still in progress at the time of this writing.
If the Steelers can keep sorting out the protection and stay on schedule, Rodgers and Warren should have more than a handful of drives to work with in Week 4.
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The Steelers 30-27 win over the Bengals in Week 3 fit neatly into a familiar rivalry script: Pittsburgh found enough answers late, Cincinnati found another painful way to let one slip away. Joe Burrow threw for 282 yards and three touchdowns on 28-of-37 passing, but a late fumble helped tilt the game back toward the Steelers, and the Bengals were again left sorting through the kind of loss that tends to linger in a division race.
Burrow responded by urging his teammates to take ownership after the defeat, which is where the frustration really starts for Cincinnati. The defense had trouble slowing Jaylen Warren and Aaron Rodgers, and the Bengals are still left to reckon with the same problem teams in the AFC North hate most - a rivalry game they were in position to win, only to watch Pittsburgh walk out with it again. [Read more 🡒]
Jaylen Warrens Big Day Reignited A Steelers Frustration Fans Know Too Well
A routine play turned into a talking point all over again when a video captured something appearing to break apart or explode under Jaylen Warrens foot during the Steelers recent game. Warren kept going without any obvious issue, and the moment quickly got swallowed up by the bigger storyline of his day on offense, as he finished with 17 carries for 127 yards and added three catches for 49 yards.
Even so, the image was enough to send Steelers fans back to a familiar frustration: the playing surface at Acrisure Stadium. The field, shared by the Steelers and the University of Pittsburgh, has drawn complaints before, and the odd sequence involving Warren only reopened the conversation after a game in which his workload and production gave Pittsburgh plenty to like. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Finally Found An Offensive Spark But A Bigger Concern Remains
The Steelers got a much-needed offensive jolt in their Week 3 win over the Bengals, and for one afternoon at least, the unit looked more balanced than it had in the opening weeks. Jaylen Warren was a big part of that turnaround with a strong rushing performance, while some changes along the offensive line seemed to help the group find a better rhythm. It was the kind of showing Pittsburgh had been searching for, especially after an uneven start that had left plenty of questions about how quickly the offense could settle in.
Still, the bigger concern sits on the other side of the ball. Pittsburghs defense showed some vulnerabilities in the 30-27 win, and the absence of Joey Porter Jr. was hard to miss as Cincinnati found enough success to keep the game tight throughout. The Steelers can take comfort in finally seeing signs of life on offense, but they also know the next stretch will tell a lot about whether that improvement is sustainable if the defense remains a little less sure of itself. [Read more 🡒]