As we do every week to prepare you for the upcoming game, we give you our X factor of the week. Sometimes it’s a player, unit, concept or scheme. Here’s our Pittsburgh Steelers X factor against the Los Angeles Chargers.
STEELERS VS CHARGERS X FACTOR: CB BRANDIN ECHOLS
The Steelers made quite a few additions to their cornerback room this offseason. The first and one of the lesser-known acquisitions was Brandin Echols. He came over from the New York Jets and initially made his way onto the roster as a backup. However, he’s seen his role grow quite a bit in recent weeks.
It started a couple of weeks ago when Darius Slay saw his own role diminished due to poor play. However, Echols has a good chance to keep his own stake in the rotation for the foreseeable future. Coming into the season, Echols, Jalen Ramsey and Beanie Bishop Jr. were the main contenders to play slot corner.
Bishop is now released, and the Steelers had Ramsey play exclusively at safety last week. As a result, Echols saw a ton of snaps at nickel and did well.
The Steelers haven’t committed to the same alignment this week, but with how well it worked, it would make sense to look at it again. Either way, Echols is part of a secondary that has a big task ahead of them come Sunday night. The Steelers do have a major advantage up front, since the Chargers will be missing both their starting tackles.
But as we’ve seen this year, the pass rush can only get there if the coverage holds up on the backend. And the Chargers have quite a talented receiving corps, one that might be the best in the AFC behind Cincinnati. Ladd McConkey and Keenan Allen are both already over 500 receiving yards on the year, Quentin Johnston has 460 and six touchdowns, and Oronde Gadsden II is having a great season with 453 yards. They have the benefit of Justin Herbert throwing them the ball, but it’s a great and deep group, nonetheless.
This is a very winnable game for the Steelers. The Chargers are suffering with injuries in a few areas, but we know Justin Herbert can hurt them through the air. And a lot of those options will come from the slot, whether that be McConkey, Allen or anyone else. Brandin Echols, who will spend a lot of time there, is going to need to be up to par.
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