Wow, what a game. It’s rare for me to struggle to find the words to describe what we just witnessed — but alas, here we are! The Pittsburgh Steelers’ opportunistic defense kickstarted a furious comeback, with the small-ball approach on offense finally coming to life in the waning moments of what became a 26-19 overtime win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Admittedly, this team was pretty fortunate to be facing a rookie backup quarterback who struggled mightily to complete passes for much of the game. To their credit, this franchise has an uncanny knack for finding ways to win ugly, and you have to tip your cap to their resiliency.
At 4-2, Pittsburgh now sits in second place in the AFC North, with a trip to France on the docket for a showdown with the New Orleans Saints next weekend. Before shifting the focus to Week 7, let’s break down some winners and losers from this win.
Dude: CB Jamel Dean
What a homecoming it was for the Steelers’ prized free-agent signing, as the 30-year-old Jamel Dean registered an unheard-of six pass deflections on the day. He showed off his football IQ by consistently sitting on underneath routes, with no greater example of that than his fourth-quarter interception. It seemed like he was actually supposed to be on a pitch count early in his return from injury, but his presence was too important to leave him on the sidelines. Dean has been very good when on the field this season and has easily been their best defensive back in coverage. He deserves a game ball and then some because Pittsburgh would not have won this game without him.
Dud: HC Mike McCarthy
Congratulations to Mike McCarthy on his first road win with his new ball club. Winning ugly is a tradition that seems to be extending into this new era. With that being said, McCarthy’s game management was a problem once again. This team continues to burn timeouts early in the first half at an inexplicable rate, including two on third-and-long situations that they failed to convert anyway. The play sequence on the final drive in regulation didn’t force Todd Bowles to use his final timeouts and allowed the Bucs to drive down the field for the game-tying field goal.
Then, almost 20 seconds came off the clock before McCarthy finally called a timeout! By the time he did, too much time had drained off the clock. He has to figure out a way to get the play calls in quicker so that Aaron Rodgers has time to dissect the defensive structure pre-snap. It’s bizarre how often they struggle to get set, with the illegal formation penalty that wiped away an explosive Jaylen Warren play serving as a good example. He’s far from the only head coach who has struggled in this area, but the margins will be much thinner against good teams.
Dude: DC Patrick Graham
The Bucs spotted the Steelers a 13-0 lead, mostly due to the ineptitude of Pittsburgh’s offense over the first three quarters. The Steelers’ defense forced multiple turnovers that led to good field position, generated five sacks, and made Tampa Bay one-dimensional, holding Bucky Irving to just 2.4 yards per carry. The real reason Patrick Graham makes this list, though, is that he’s found a way to weaponize Jalen Ramsey, who continues to make impact plays in a role that has him playing closer to the line of scrimmage. Graham took advantage of Jalon Daniels’ inexperience by sending all-out pressures, including one that ended the ballgame in overtime.
Dud: QB Aaron Rodgers
Todd Bowles has given Rodgers fits over the years, and he looked uncomfortable and unwilling to push the ball downfield against Tampa Bay’s various pressure looks. He finished the day with a 37% success rate, -0.22 EPA per play, and a whopping 31.25% pressure-to-sack ratio. It could have been worse had Josiah Trotter not dropped a walk-in pick-six on a checkdown. The Steelers have the weapons to take advantage of teams that struggle with tackling, like the Bucs, but Rodgers’ limitations are going to be much harder to hide when the weather gets colder. To his credit, he did make a big-time throw to DK Metcalf over the middle on third-and-13 in overtime to keep a drive alive.
Dudes: WRs DK Metcalf and Germie Bernard
On a day when the downfield passing game was nonexistent, the toughness of Pittsburgh’s new duo really stood out, as they seemed to wear down the opposition as the game went along. Both also had their moments as blockers. Germie Bernard totaled 68 yards after the catch, showcasing sure hands and good vision as a ball carrier. Metcalf was also difficult to bring down, with his best catch coming on a double move where he contorted his body before dragging his feet along the sideline.
Dude: EDGE Nick Herbig
Nick Herbig’s first sack of the season came via a speed rush where he beat star left tackle Tristan Wirfs around the corner. Ultimately, he led the Steelers with five pressures, adding a hustle sack to his resume late in the fourth quarter. He’s drawn a lot of heat from the media because of his lack of box-score production, although that’s pretty easy to explain if you watch the tape on a weekly basis. Today, he was given a season-high 25 opportunities to rush the passer, and he delivered. Now, it would be helpful if he could stop missing tackles at an alarming rate. All in all, he continues to play better than he gets credit for.
Dude: Special Teams
Cameron Johnston was unbelievable in the first half, continuously flipping the field with his big leg and pinning the Bucs inside their own 20-yard line. The recently promoted Lew Nichols was awesome in kick coverage, playing a role in a couple of stops. Chris Boswell did miss another kick in the first half, which is a concerning trend. However, nailing a 58-yarder in the clutch more than makes up for it in my opinion. I know kickers are insane these days, but there are few legs I trust more with the game on the line.
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