It seems as if the Pittsburgh Steelers have escaped the worst case scenario with star defender, T.J. Watt and his pectoral injury. The edge rusher walked off the field on Sunday and went straight to the locker room in clear pain, but reports indicate he could return in about 5-6 weeks. The reigning 2021 AP Defensive Player of the Year won't have the chance to defend that honor in 2022, but getting him back before November is a huge sigh of relief given the nature of the injury he suffered. With him on the sidelines, it isn't the defense that needs to pick up the slack, but rather, the offense.
The Pittsburgh Steelers during a regular season game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Sept. 11, 2022 in Cincinnati, OH. The Steelers beat the Bengals in OT 23-20. | Credit: Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
The offense was only responsible for 16 points in Week 1 and 10 of those points were thanks to turnovers by the defense. Both sacks and turnovers will naturally go down with the Steelers' best defensive player not playing, but the defense is talented enough to continue to make plays. The next few games aren't necessarily concerning in terms of the team's competition having offensive firepower, but they will hit a stretch in mid-October when the offense is going to need to step up, and keep up.
Pittsburgh has a chance to win against the New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns and New York Jets without putting up more than 23 points as they did on Sunday. But, these games are more important than simply remaining at the top of the AFC North. The offense needs to find a groove and they need to hit it right as they are about to take on the Buffalo Bills and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5 and 6, respectively.
No game is an easy one to win in the NFL, but Matt Canada's group needs to look at the next three weeks as a second preseason. Not because the games don't mean anything, but all three offenses have questions and the team's defense will still perform without Watt. It's when they get to two of the best quarterbacks and offenses in the league that Mitch Trubisky (or Kenny Pickett) will need to step up and lead a group that can put up points. The next three weeks, it is imperative that the offensive unit is fine tuned.
Steelers offensive coordinator, Matt Canada on the field during 2022 training camp. | Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
The group will only go as far as the offensive line will take them. Surprisingly, they held their own better than anyone expected them to on Sunday afternoon. Trubisky was only sacked once. With that said, the goal-line rushing attack was abysmal and overall run game was nonexistent. Canada needs to trust the line and develop an offense that can be dangerous in multiple ways.
Patrick Mahomes threw only one more pass than Trubisky did on Sunday and the Kansas City Chiefs scored 44 points. No one is asking Trubisky to be Mahomes, but scoring 16 points on 38 pass attempts with a time of possession at just 26:17 is unacceptable. The Steelers will get dismantled if they allow the Bills and Buccaneers to control that amount of clock.
This is a main reason why Pickett will probably remain on the bench for a while. He's not going to be thrown out there against the Bills' or Buccaneers' defenses and the next three weeks are crucial for the offense's development. Trubisky found a way to get the win on Sunday, despite an ugly stat line, and there is no reason to not let the veteran grow with the offensive the team has in place.
PITTSBURGH, PA - AUGUST 28: Kenny Pickett #8 of the Pittsburgh Steelers in action during the game against the Detroit Lions at Acrisure Stadium on August 28, 2022 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
The run game is critical if the offense wants to perform at a higher level. Najee Harris seems to be dealing with the same foot injury that held him out of the majority of training camp, but whether it's him at 100% or Jaylen Warren carrying the football, Canada needs to commit to the run in order to open up more options. Teams that don't fear the run will sit back and not give Trubisky any easy throws, dropping seven or eight men into coverage.
Sure, the Steelers defense will need to replace some production without Watt on the field, but they still have playmakers everywhere and should be able to shut down opposing offenses to some degree. It won't be perfect until Watt is healthy and returns, though, and this is why the offense needs to find a rhythm and develop the ability to put some points on the board to compete with some tough competition and offenses that are ahead.
Do you agree that the offense needs to pick up the slack with Watt on the sidelines? Let us know in the comments below!
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