What a difference fifteen days make?
Just over two weeks ago, the atmosphere at Acrisure Stadium was toxic. The Steelers were reeling and the fans were calling for Mike Tomlin’s job and, in a rare move of desperation, even booing “Renegade.” But last night, under the bright lights of Monday Night football, the script was flipped. As the opening notes of the Styx classic echoed through the cold Pittsburgh air, 65,000 towel-waving fans had what they have been waiting for all season, a strong and decisive win.
The Steelers handled the Miami Dolphins 28-15 in a wire-to-wire victory that didn’t just feel like a win; it felt like a statement. With three weeks left in the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers continue to get stronger v. last season where they faded down the stretch.
The first 25 minutes of offense looked like it was going to be another ineffective performance. The Steelers started 0-for-7 on third downs, and the pass protection looked leaky. But once Aaron Rodgers found his groove, and it was a masterclass in how to play Quarterback in the “weighty moments”.
Rodgers led the offense on four consecutive touchdown drives, finishing 23-of-27 for 224 yards and two touchdowns. Perhaps most importantly, he hasn’t thrown an interception since that Week 10 trip to LA. Rodger’s engineered the crushing blow, the play of the night came in the third quarter: a 3rd-and-11 strike to DK Metcalf, who proceeded to toss old friend Minkah Fitzpatrick into the land of irrelevance on his way to a 28-yard score.
While Rodgers provided the flash, the win was built on a tough ground game. After a sluggish first half, the offensive line took over, mauling the Dolphins and wearing them down, creating the running room for 108 of the 135 rushing yards came in the second half. That is the definition of wearing a team down. Kenneth Gainwell was the spark plug, jump-starting the second half with a 38-yard burst. He finished with 126 yards from scrimmage (80 rushing, 46 receiving). Give credit to Jaylen Warren toughed it out through an illness to add 48 yards.
Even the tight ends got in on the ground game! Connor Heyward opened the scoring with a “tush push”, something that the Steelers continue to improve on and Jonnu Smith capped it off with a 14-yard end-around touchdown.
Teryl Austin deserves a ton of credit. Playing without T.J. Watt and rookie Derrick Harmon, “the strength of the pack is the pack”, mentality was on full display.
The game plan was very simple: Stop De’Von Achane and Dolphins run that propelled them into their 5-1 streak and make Tua Tagovailoa beat them.
Patrick Queen (10 tackles) and Malik Harrison played downhill all night, holding one of the league’s most explosive backs to just 60 yards. When Tua did look to pass, the secondary stayed disciplined. Asante Samuel Jr. nabbed his first interception as a Steeler, and Jalen Ramsey showed his former team he’s still got plenty left in the tank with six tackles and a sack.
Mike Tomlin remains undefeated at home on Monday Night Football. More importantly, he is exercising the ghosts of last season. Arthur Smith adjusted his play-calling in the second half, and the defense won even without their top defensive star. We went from “Oust Tomlin” to “AFC North Leaders” in the span of two weeks. The road only gets more narrow from here.
BEER WE GO STEELERS, BEER WE GO!
My “GAME BEER” goes to: Aaron Rodgers who has put together back to back wins, after people were calling him “washed”, was 23-27 and put up 224 yards with two touchdowns. Also Considered: Dylan Cook who had a solid outing playing Left Tackle, Cam Heyward and the front set the tone for the defense.
Beer of the Game: Went with Long Ireland Brewing Company again; their classic Celtic Ale. We got bad news this week, the brewery, which is a Long Island staple, will be shuttering at the end of the year. We wanted to support them and give them a proper sendoff.
“Steel the Snacks”: The magic returned for the snacks. We did “Steel the Snacks”, in honor of D-man’s return and his birthday, KGB crushed it, with Cuban Sandwiches. The Steelers scored the first half touchdown when they came out.
My stat of the week: The Steelers’ win yesterday was the 39th head-to-head meeting between Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh, including the playoffs. With that victory, Mike Tomlin improved his record against John Harbaugh to 22-17. This result also gave Tomlin the most head-to-head wins by one coach over another in the Super Bowl era. They are second in the most games between two head coaches, trailing only George Halas and Curly Lambeau, who faced each other 49 times.
My thoughts on next week: The Steelers will have their hands full with a tough Lions team, that was totally jobbed last week by the refs.
Jersey of the Week: NO jersey this week, because of business, I went with a black sport coat, gold shirt and a Steelers pocket silk for my meetings yesterday.