There’s no denying the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense has fallen short this season. But Sunday’s win over the Indianapolis Colts and their high-flying offense at least cracked the door for a little second-half optimism. Now comes the real litmus test. If this defense can’t hold up against a Los Angeles Chargers offense held together by a MASH-unit offensive line, we’ll get a clear picture of what it really is.
“You are looking at a Chargers team and an offensive line that’s ranked 31st in pressures allowed, okay? They’re one of the worst offensive lines in football,” Steven A. Smith said Friday via ESPN’s First Take. “They’ve given up 28 sacks this year. The Steelers are [third] in the league having registered [27]. We had trepidation about the Steelers’ defense. Well, this is an opportunity to show that you’re not nearly as bad as we thought you were.
“If the Chargers go out and manage to have their way with you offensively despite those troubles with the offensive line, I think that’ll be evidence for us that the Steelers’ defense just ain’t going to be anything that we hoped for them to be this season.”
In a lot of ways, the Steelers’ win over the Colts was expected of a Mike Tomlin team. They play down to competition and back themselves into a corner only to pull off an unlikely win. The Chargers are an opportunity to prove that last week’s win wasn’t a flash in the pan. To prove that moving Jalen Ramsey to safety and also starting newly acquired Kyle Dugger there may actually have fixed some things and wasn’t just happenstance.
The Chargers’ offensive line was already struggling to keep Justin Herbert upright, but now they are dealing with two more key injuries to Bobby Hart and Joe Alt. Even after trading for Trevor Penning, he only has a couple days to get ready to play against one of the most talented defensive fronts in football. It would be inexcusable if the Steelers’ pass rush gets neutralized on Sunday.
Yet we’ve seen teams overcome a talent deficit by getting rid of the ball quickly and relying on the run game. Have the Steelers figured out how to counter that style of play? If they haven’t, the entire league will continue recreating that strategy against them.
A win over the Chargers might not say much about the Steelers’ upside, but a loss would say a whole lot more. A win won’t crown this defense, but anything short of controlling this matchup will make last week look like an exception — not a turning point.
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