When the NFL schedule was released in May, we all wondered what state the Pittsburgh Steelers would be in by the time the crucial AFC North games finally started in Week 11.
“I’ll play (the divisional games) whenever they schedule us,” head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday. “We’ve got no control over our schedule. Our goal is to beat everybody, but specifically week-to-week, we get singularly focused on this week’s opponent. So, I’d be making it up if I told you I cared about the schedule of when we face people. I don’t.”
Well, maybe he should.
Because, as it turns out, Tomlin’s team actually appears to be in a much better place to begin divisional play than it would have been if they started playing their AFC North foes earlier in the season.
That may sound strange, given that the Steelers got off to a 3-0 start. But think about it.
The 7-2 Steelers finally open AFC North hostilities against the 7-3 Baltimore Ravens on Sunday at Acrisure Stadium with first place in the division on the line.
Would you rather have the Steelers playing all six of their important divisional games over the next eight weeks, or would you have preferred to get a bunch of those games against the Ravens, Bengals and Browns earlier in the season?
Sure, Justin Fields was good enough to pilot the Steelers to wins in their first three games and four of their first six. But Russell Wilson is healthy and starting now. With him at QB, the Steelers are averaging 30.3 points per game over his first three starts — all victories.
The Steelers are now also averaging 382.4 yards per game with Wilson under center as opposed to Fields at 298.3. As far as passing yards per game, they are at 230.3 with Wilson at the helm. The offense was at 166.8 per game before Fields was moved back to second-string.
Having more offensive firepower will be crucial against the Ravens (31.8 points per game, No. 1 in the NFL) and Bengals (27 points per game, No. 6 in the NFL) four times between now and the end of the season.
“You find out a lot about a lot of people,” offensive coordinator Arthur Smith said of Wilson taking over in Week 7. “Using his terms, he stayed neutral. There was no panic in him.”
It’s not just about the quarterback, though. Consider everything else that’s different now than was the case in the first half of the season before the bye.
• Along the offensive line, guard Isaac Seumalo is back from his pectoral injury after missing the first four games. Rookie center Zach Frazier is back from injury and has seven starts under his belt. Fellow rookie guard Mason McCormick has gotten to play in nine games, starting six. After some disastrous early season games, Broderick Jones may be playing his way back toward an acceptable level at right tackle.
• The entire offensive unit seems to be getting used to Smith’s rush attack after relying on Fields’ legs far too often over the first six weeks. Najee Harris has broken 100 yards in three of the past four weeks, plus Jaylen Warren and Cordarrelle Patterson have recovered from September injuries.
More sports
• Steelers OLB Alex Highsmith ruled out against Ravens, but Nick Herbig expected to return
• Penguins’ Kyle Dubas: Trading Lars Eller adds assets, clears ice time for younger players
• Steelers coach Mike Tomlin bills Ravens game as 5-star matchup with ‘villains on both sides’
• On defense, inside linebacker Patrick Queen may have just had his best game since joining the Steelers from Baltimore via free agency on Sunday at Washington. Defensive back Cam Sutton also got his first reps during that win after coming back from an eight-game suspension. Linebacker Nick Herbig is supposed to return from a four-game absence too. Quality special teamers Tyler Matakevich and Ben Skowronek have gotten healthy as well.
• New trade acquisitions Mike Williams and Preston Smith just arrived last week. They both made huge impacts in Game 1 of their Steelers careers in Washington. Williams caught the game-winning touchdown pass, and Smith had a sack and another tackle for loss.
“The guy had 1,000-yard seasons over his career,” Wilson said of Williams. “A guy who has made plays. A guy who has faced adversity. You love it when guys face adversity and they come through on the other end of it.”
Granted, Alex Highsmith and Donte Jackson suffered injuries in that Washington game. However, Jackson may not miss any time, and Highsmith was also injured for a while before the bye. Now his absence (for however long that may be thanks to an ankle injury) may be mitigated by the infusion of snaps from Smith and Herbig.
Don’t get me wrong. Things aren’t perfect for the Steelers. The defense has shown some cracks over the past six weeks.
That concern aside, in terms of health, continuity and momentum, the club is in as good of a place as one could hope to start this brutal eight-game gauntlet to close out the regular season. Six of those games will be against their hated divisional rivals from Ohio and Maryland. The other two are against the teams from Philadelphia and Kansas City, which have a combined 16-2 record.
Based on everything we just outlined, though, surprisingly, it looks like the schedule makers may have actually done the Steelers a favor. The Steelers appear to be far better girded for that challenge than they would have been if a lot of those games had been peppered into the first half of the schedule.
Listen: Tim Benz and Chris Adamski discuss Sunday’s Steelers-Ravens game
