NFL
By: Melo Williams
After losing to the New England Patriots Week 2 17-14 the Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1) face a tough battle with AFC North rival Cleveland Browns (1-1) who are also coming off a Week 2 loss to the New York Jets 31-30.
Not only are the Steelers coming off of a loss, the offense still hasn’t managed to get going, but it’s a short week, and trying to make adjustments on a short week against a division rival isn’t the best choice to make. However Pittsburgh just doesn’t need adjustments, they need MAJOR adjustments starting with offensive coordinator Matt Canada.
Keys to a Steelers victory over the Browns:
Offensive Coordinator Matt Canada must open up the playbook past page 2. His play calling has been horrendous. It’s been so bad wide receivers Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and rookie George Pickens body language spoke often against the Patriots how they were feeling even if they were trying to hold their composure. After the Week 2 loss Steelers’ Pickens said everything just short of Super Bowl Champion Keyshawn Johnson most famous line “Just pass me the damn ball” expressing his frustrations for the lack of looks he and the other wide receivers have had early in the 2022 season. In the preseason Pickens made a big splash on Steelers fan’s radars and captured so many hearts with his play that fans themselves can’t understand why George Pickens only has five targets in two games. George Pickens went from being involved with the game plan to five targets with two receptions and 26 yards. Matt Canada has to mix up the personnel, formations, and tendencies on how he calls plays against a Browns defense led by Myles Garrett, or else it’s going to be a long frustrating night for Pittsburgh offense as a whole.
Mitch Trubisky has to play ball and play the quarterback position how it’s supposed to be played and by doing what he does best and playing to his abilities. That Mitch Trubisky is mobile making plays with his legs and arm. So far Mitch has played in a shell very timidly and it has hurt the Steelers offense second to Canada’s awful play calling. There have been plays in both games against the Bengals and Patriots where Mitch could’ve and should’ve run the ball but he didn’t. He stayed in the pocket too long, took the sack, or made a bad late throw because the pocket had collapsed. In two starts with the Steelers, Mitch has completed 42 of his passes out of 71 attempts for 362 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. He has a 59.2% completion rate and a QBR of 38.5. Matt Canada needs to call more plays rolling Trubisky out giving him the opportunity to use his legs and mobility which is at the top of his strengths. If Trubisky is sacked by Myles Garrett once or twice, I’m certain Mitch will have the Myles clock in his head and will look to run frequently. Besides using his mobility Trubisky must make the throws downfield to open it up for Najee Harris and most importantly to keep the Browns defense honest.
Steelers run defense must contain Browns running Back Nick Chubb who enters Week 3 as the NFL’s second-leading rusher. In six games against Chubb and the Browns the Steelers are 0-2 when Chubb rushes for 84 yards or more but is 4-0 against the Browns when Chubb rushes for less than 84 yards. Not only do the Browns have Nick Chubb, but they also have Kareem Hunt who is a good running back himself but a different type of runner compared to Chubb. Chubb is a bruiser while Hunt has that speed. Thunder and lighting is the best way to use describing their running styles. In the first two weeks Cleveland offensive line has dominated the defensive lines in both games so expect that same Browns offensive line to be very aggressive against the Steelers defensive line and defense as a whole playing without outside linebacker T.J. Watt who is currently on the Reserve/Injured list. Defensive Coordinator Austin Teryl and Brian Flores are going to need some schemes with blitz packages that will get some pressure on the Browns offensive line getting pressure on Cleveland quarterback Jacoby Brissett sacking him and forcing him to make bad throws for interceptions.
The offensive line and Najee Harris must get rolling. The young Steelers offensive line has been improving by the game but must continue getting better and knowing their assignments run blocking. If it’s one thing Matt Canada has done so far this season, it’s that he’s definitely been calling Harris number putting the ball in his hands hoping his legs gets the offense going. That hasn’t been the case though. The former first-round pick has 72 yards rushing on 25 attempts, for only 2.9 yards per carry. Najee has been trying to make plays with his legs and power instead of hitting the holes and gaps the offensive line created for him. Former Steelers tackle Traix Essex a two-time Super Bowl Champion voiced his frustrations on social media. He posted a screenshot of the first play of the game against the Patriots and said “I had to watch this again to make sure I wasn’t tripping. This was the first play of the game. It is almost blocked to perfection!” “Look at that interior push! There is no read here that tells Najee to bounce it. He predetermined this. Man, this angers me so much.”
Harris may not be fully healthy after suffering a foot injury during training camp but Harris rushing and receiving abilities are being missed by a struggling offense. Harris has to have a big game against Cleveland for the Steelers to get a victory.
Even though it’s a short week and a quick turnaround to play Thursday night, I believe Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin will have made the right proper adjustments for his team to win against division rival Cleveland Browns. Pittsburgh has dominated the series 68-29-1 since 1970. I have the Steelers bouncing back from a Week 2 loss to beat the Cleveland Browns 24-16 moving the total up to 69 in the win column.
