By: CJ Lester, @CJLester58
SteelerNation.com
After the Week 4 bye week due to a coronavirus outbreak within the Tennessee Titans’ organization, the Pittsburgh Steelers will be back into action tomorrow at Heinz Field against the Philadelphia Eagles. Both teams are in first place in their respective divisions, however the Steelers lead the AFC North with a 3-0 record and the Eagles lead the struggling NFC East with a 1-2-1 record. The Steelers should be able to put it all together against the Eagles this week, especially with the injuries on the Eagles’ side of things and the period of rest the Steelers had during the unscheduled bye week. However, this is the NFL and anything can happen on any given week.
Let’s take a look at 3 things to keep an eye out for during the Battle of the Keystone State.
- How will the Steelers respond coming out of the forced bye week?
Historically, the Steelers don’t have an extremely lopsided record coming out of the bye week, but they do have a winning record. The Steelers are 19-12 coming off of a bye, but do typically struggle against NFC teams in this situation. The Steelers are only 2-3 against NFC teams after a bye, however I am not sure how much of a factor these stats will have on tomorrow’s game. After all, this isn’t just a regular bye week or a regular NFL season. This forced early bye week could play in the Steelers favor. The Eagles are bruised and battered and have a few key players already ruled out for the game due to injuries. WR Alshon Jeffery, WR DeSean Jackson, and CB Avonte Maddox have all already been ruled out. While the Eagles have a few key players already ruled out, the Steelers’ injury report is relatively clean. FB Derek Watt and S/ILB Marcus Allen have both been ruled out for tomorrow’s game. While we know the Steelers really just started using Watt in the power running game in the first quarter of our last game against the Houston Texans, the Steelers’ special teams’ unit will be the unit most affected by these two injuries. Someone else will have to step up against the Eagles to help lead our special teams’ unit. The Steelers will have to be creative in their attack in power running situations without the luxury of having Watt come in to lead block. The few extra days of rest has given the Steelers’ players a chance to heal up from injuries and bumps and bruises associated with the play of the game sustained in Weeks 1-3. Although the Eagles are the NFC East division leaders currently, they have struggled heavily this season. The NFC East is by far the worst division in the entire NFL. If the Steelers are able to come out aggressive and avoid letting their foot off the gas, this should be a comfortable win.
- Will the Steelers be able to protect Big Ben?
While the Eagles have struggled mightily this season, the one bright spot has been their ability to get after the quarterback. The Eagles lead the league in sacks through the first quarter of the season with 17. The Steelers’ offensive line will have their work cut out for them against the Eagles defense tomorrow afternoon. The Eagles have 13 players with at least half a sack this season. They are definitely spreading the wealth around and a lot of players are able to get to the quarterback, including former Steelers DT Javon Hargrave. While he has yet to produce dominating numbers this season, we know Hargrave has the ability to get to the quarterback. The last thing any Steelers’ fans want to see is the former Steeler putting Ben Roethlisberger on his back. The Steelers’ offensive line has done pretty well keeping Roethlisberger upright this season, the Steelers’ QB has only been sacked 5 times in the first 3 games. That is good enough to be top 10 in the league with only allowing 1.7 sacks per game. The Steelers’ offensive line is relatively healthy, despite losing RT Zach Banner against the Giants in Week 1. Chukwuma Okorafor, who has done well replacing Banner, will battle with DE Brandon Graham most of the game. The Steelers’ offensive line vs. the Eagles’ pass rush will be a great matchup to watch tomorrow.
- Will the Steelers be able to capitalize on turnovers with Touchdowns instead of Field Goals?
I have said in a previous article, there are 3 things in life you can count on and those are death, taxes, and this Steelers’ defense getting a turnover. We know the defense is capable of forcing turnovers, but will the offense be able to capitalize on the turnovers and turn them into touchdowns? This season, the Steelers’ offense has struggled scoring touchdowns off of takeaways by the defense. This, among other things, has allowed lesser teams to stay competitive against the Steelers until the end of the game. A win is a win, but if the Steelers are going to be able to compete with high scoring offenses like the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens down the road, it is vital for them to take advantage of extra possessions from takeaways and score touchdowns to put teams away! If the Steelers are going to be able to capitalize on turnovers, this is the week for them to put it all together and do so. This isn’t a prediction just a common sense observation. The Steelers’ defense is capable of forcing turnovers and has forced 5 turnovers in 3 games thus far this season. The Eagles have struggled on offense and are tied for the lead-league in giveaways this season with 9. Seven of those turnovers are interceptions that have been thrown by Eagles QB Carson Wentz. He has also fumbled the ball 4 times this season, despite only losing one of those. Wentz is responsible for 8 of the 9 turnovers committed by the Eagles this season and this Steelers' defense is notorious for getting after the QB. The Steelers’ defense will get their hands on the football tomorrow, but will the offensive be able to capitalize and put 7 points on the score board after the fact?
What are your thoughts on the “Battle of the Keystone State” this week? Sound off in the comment section below, on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
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