Tim Benz: Steelers-Eagles should be a tale of the trenches
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Analysis of Sunday’s Pittsburgh Steelers game against the Philadelphia Eagles comes down to two specific things.
Check that. The analysis isn’t even that complicated. Simply put, the Steelers should win. Period. And they should cover the seven-point spread bouncing around most gambling outlets.
But how easily the Steelers win — or how the Eagles could pull off the upset — comes down to two angles. And they are both in the trenches.
• Can the Steelers exploit Philadelphia’s patchwork offensive line?
• Can the Eagles’ impressive defensive front win the line of scrimmage often enough to keep the game close?
Let’s start on the Eagles side of the ball. Philadelphia’s offensive line is incredibly banged up. Center Jason Kelce is the only preseason projected starter still healthy enough to play full time.
Tackle Jordan Mailata made his first career start in San Francisco on Sunday night and seemed to grade out well. On the right side, starter Lane Johnson was in and out of the game with a bad ankle. So he rotated with backup Jack Driscoll. And guards Matt Pryor and Nate Herbig have a combined six starts in their careers.
“They did OK,” Eagles coach Doug Pedersen said of his offensive line’s performance Sunday night. “They held up nicely against a good 49ers front. It’s not perfect. They are still young guys. Still developing.”
The Eagles’ sack total of 14 allowed is eye-catching. But, keep in mind, eight of those occurred in Game 1 against Washington.
That said, the Steelers are coming into this game with 15 sacks, in just three contests. That’s the second-best total in the NFL. And they are also rated second-best when it comes to yards allowed per game (236).
“When you have to replace somebody, there is blood in the water. We try to feast on that,” Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward said this week. “They’ll play accordingly. Get the ball out quick. Run the ball. A lot of screens. But, when we get our chances, we have to get home. We have to make them one dimensional. If we do that, we are going to have a fun day.”
Between that inexperienced line play, injuries at the receiver position, and a league-high seven interceptions from Carson Wentz, the Philadelphia offense has struggled. At 319 yards per game, the Eagles are 28th in the league in total offense. And at 21 points per game, the Eagles are 26th in scoring.
Unless T.J. Watt’s knee injury — which kept him out of practice Thursday — proves to be substantial enough to limit his participation Sunday, this should be a matchup the Steelers exploit.
On the flip side, the Steelers are working their way back to cohesion along the offensive line. All-Pro David DeCastro has returned at right guard after missing the first two games. He played well versus the Houston Texans in Week 3. And Chuks Okorafor is settling in at right tackle after two decent starts replacing Zach Banner.
That’s good because the defensive front of the Eagles is probably their strongest attribute. The Eagles only allow 3.6 yards per rush. That’s seventh-best in football. Along with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they are the only team in the NFL with more sacks (17) than the Steelers.
Granted eight of those sacks came in one game against the Cincinnati Bengals two weeks ago. But that unit has talent and pedigree. Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham and Malik Jackson all have All-Pro or Pro Bowl designations on their resumes. Third-year product Josh Sweat has three sacks so far this season. Former Steeler Javon Hargrave and Derek Barnett have a combined 26.5 sacks over the past three years.
“They took over that Bengals game toward the end and allowed that game to end in a tie with a dominant rush performance from Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday. “But it goes beyond Cox and Graham. They have a seven- and eight-man rotation that is formidable. They run a lot of people at you.”
If that unit stuffs the Steelers run early and forces quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to become one dimensional with the pass, that’s how Philadelphia will make this game too close for comfort. Probably not to the point that they pull off the upset. But to the point that, in Pittsburgh, we still have something to complain about.
Which is what I do in this column — as you do as fans in the comments section — better than anyone.
Before you do so in this post, click the link below and listen to James Seltzer of WIP radio in Philadelphia. He joined me for today’s “Breakfast With Benz” podcast to preview the Eagles. He talks about how the lack of skill position support for Wentz may be an even bigger deal than the offensive line woes. How the struggling Eagles linebackers are a reason why tight ends are putting up big numbers. And the state of the dreadful NFC East.