The Pittsburgh Steelers faced a daunting task on Christmas Eve when they met the Las Vegas Raiders. They were facing the ghost of Franco Harris, the bitter wrath of the Raiders from days gone by and most importantly, Davante Adams. Adams might be the best wide receiver in the league with apologies to Justin Jefferson who is no lower than 1A. Pittsburgh’s secondary has struggled against A.J. Brown, Stephon Diggs and even Michael Pittman came up with big plays against the black and gold earlier this season.
Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers defense could not play dime and triple team Adams all night. The Raiders also featured the NFL’s leading rusher in Josh Jacobs and after an opening drive that looked way too easy, it looked like it was going to be a long night. The Steelers defense refused to give up as the offense tried to find its stride and for the remainder of the game, Adams wasn’t a factor.
“This is a lot of communication,” Minkah Fitzpatrick said after the game about limiting Adams. “There are different doubles, different looks, you know what I’m saying. We do it a good amount throughout the season, so it’s easy.”
The Pro Bowl free safety and the entire secondary shut down Adams who only caught two passes for 15 yards and none in the second half. He was open several times, but Derek Carr missed him badly. Sometimes the best defense is a quarterback who is playing poorly. The Steelers did a good job mixing pressures that allowed double teams to take Adams away and dropping into coverage when Carr thought Adams was singled up. It didn’t help that Jacobs was being completely stifled, but it was obvious that Carr was not comfortable outside the hashes and that is where Adams carves up defenses.
He was comfortable finding Darren Waller over the middle of the field. Waller only caught four passes, but a 34-yard strike just before half set up the Raiders final score. Minkah Fitzpatrick seemed to be trailing him several times as the former Pro Bowl tight end who has missed a lot of the 2022 season, demonstrated why he is a star.
“Waller, he’s a great tight end. He’s athletic, great hands, great speed,” Fitzpatrick said. “He’s a big body, it’s tough to cover. That was my matchup for the game, I did a pretty good job, besides the one deep ball that they got to him. He gets paid too, so he’s gonna make plays. He’s a play-maker, especially on third down. I can’t continue to consider myself one of the best if I’m not going up against them.”
Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (39) during a regular season game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday, Sept. 11, 2022 in Cincinnati, OH. (Karl Roser/Pittsburgh Steelers)
Fitzpatrick was briefly the highest paid safety in the NFL and is still near the top of the list at the position. The Steelers highly paid defense demonstrated for three and a half quarters why Pittsburgh prioritized signing defensive superstars. He did get burned by the big tight end, but in the second half, the secondary took away the pass. Carr was either under duress or completely misread the defensive play call and released balls far too early which is exactly what the black and gold defense is designed to do.
The defense has been relatively healthy since TJ Watt returned to the lineup and are 6-2 with Watt and 1-6 without him. It’s likely that hole is too big to dig out of, but it is Christmas. The Steelers have two games remaining and at least until next Sunday night, they are in the hunt. This is a young football team that could certainly benefit from a high draft pick, but nobody told the defense. They are still trying to win and by doing so, uncovered the best player a defense can have on its side, Kenny Pickett a franchise quarterback.
What do you think, Steeler Nation? Are you happy that the defense played lights out against the Raiders to allow a comeback win? Please comment below or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
