The Steelers are 3-1 with a one-game lead in the AFC North and coming off their best game of the season. Chris Hoke believes the win in Dublin was a step forward. Of course, the only way for them to validate that is to come out on the other side of the bye and prove it. But Pittsburgh did show some encouraging signs, cleaning up some issues while getting injured players back.
“I saw a team that took a step forward. I saw a team that’s starting to play sound football, Steeler football, take another step,” the former Steelers NT said Thursday on 93.7 The Fan. “Now they’ve got a bye week to get some guys back, to look at the film for the first month of the season and see what they’re doing well, what they need to improve, and make the adjustments or continue to hammer on what they did well. I think it was a big step forward this week against the Vikings.”
The Steelers’ biggest concern is the health of Jalen Ramsey, who injured his hamstring against the Vikings. Although he tried to return to the game, reports indicate he could miss time. On the plus side, they could get both Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr., so depth shouldn’t be an issue. The issue is that you just can’t replace what a player like Jalen Ramsey brings.
On the other hand, the Steelers have a more favorable schedule coming out of the bye. They face the Browns and the Bengals, neither of which is in good shape right now. The Bengals have no defense, and QB Jake Browning has turned back into a pumpkin. As for the Browns, their defense has great potential, but there’s a reason they just made a quarterback change. Unless Dillon Gabriel is magic, this should be a winnable game in Week 6.
Against the Vikings, the Steelers seemed to unlock a path toward a stronger run game. Kenneth Gainwell operated smoothly, working behind jumbo personnel with Spencer Anderson as an extra lineman and lots of Darnell Washington. Given Gainwell’s success, there’s no reason to think Jaylen Warren can’t thrive, too. Even rookie Kaleb Johnson showed signs of life, hopefully with more to come.
Defensively, the Steelers did a much better job—for most of the game. While they started leaking late, allowing 15 points in the fourth quarter, some of that came down to attrition and conservatism with a big lead. At that point, they were playing James Pierre, so better health alone should help.
If the Steelers lose WR Calvin Austin III for a bit, they do have options. While they have other receivers, it could open the door for Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith. They have featured their tight ends less than one would have anticipated going into this season. But there is still a lot of meat on the bone for the offense as a whole. One concern Chris Hoke expressed is that the offensive line still has work to do. That group has made progress, but to unlock the full potential of this offense, it has to get to the next level.
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