Steelers' TJ Watt Gives Encouraging News On Pittsburgh's Preparation Against The Packers

The Pittsburgh Steelers were recently defeated by the Cincinnati Bengals 33-31 on Thursday Night Football in a showing that made it look as if the Steelers hadn't shown up on defense. The Steelers gave up 342 passing yards to Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco and another 108 rushing yards to Bengals running back Chase Brown. This was on top of allowing Bengals superstar wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase to record the single-game record for receptions with 16 on 23 targets. Overall, the defensive effort was incredibly poor, being unable to stop the Bengals all night long no matter what they did, ultimately leading to the unit failing to stop the Bengals' final drive that came with 2:21 left in the game. Ultimately, the Bengals were able to kick the game-winning field goal to seal the deal. 

There were plenty of questions raised about the state of the Steelers' defense after the poor showing against the Bengals, especially with the Green Bay Packers coming to town for Sunday Night Football in a primetime matchup that will inevitably be a much stronger test for a defense that is still seen by many as a top tier unit in the league. While there were answers given about the Steelers' inability to stop the Bengals on the final drive, there were still plenty of questions left unanswered about the upcoming plans for taking on the Packers' offense. 

There were more answers given to the questions about preparation on defense against the Packers when Steelers All-Pro edge rusher TJ Watt stepped up to the podium to discuss their efforts this week. Watt went on to explain the effort put into the gameplan against the Packers on 93.7 The Fan and made it rather simple, yet encouraging to Steelers fans who hope to see the defense bounce back.

"Stop the run, stop the run, stop the run," Watt stated. "And obviously try to affect the pass as much as we possibly can. I mean, we're not gonna get taken two weeks in a row, there's just a lot of things, guys doing their job individually, allowing us to play the best we possibly can collectively, and get back to what we do."

Watt's emphasis on stopping the run will definitely be a crucial element to the upcoming matchup against the Packers, as Packers running back Josh Jacobs has been an effective piece of their offense within the past month. Keeping him limited to small gains on the ground will be one of the best ways to keep the Packers from moving the ball effectively. The Steelers' defense has shown that they have the ability to keep elite players like Jacobs contained, but haven't been able to put up consistent efforts week to week, which has ultimately led to comments like Watt's taking center stage. 

However, Watt's remarks also show a sign of confidence that the unit is collectively working on improving themselves, which would be coming at the right time considering how considerably difficult the schedule becomes for the Steelers -- even after this Sunday night against the Packers.

Steelers' Defense Needs To Gain Consistency With Increasingly Difficult Games Soon

As the Steelers enter one of the more difficult stretches of their season, starting this Sunday night against the Packers, Watt's comments about players working individually to perform at a high level to enhance the collective play of the unit as a whole will come into focus. The entire defense will need to begin putting up consistent performances against teams like the Packers if they want to be taken seriously as Super Bowl contenders. If the Steelers can go into Sunday night and put up a strong showing on defense, making the Bengals game seem more like an apparition than their real level of play, then there won't be many left that would be able to doubt the strength of the Steelers' defense going forward.

What did you think about Watt's comments with regards to preparations on defense to take on the Packers? Let us know in the comments or on X at @SteelersSwamp7.

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