Game Recap
The Pittsburgh Steelers came away with a 16-10 win against the New Orleans Saints as the team competed in Europe for the second straight season after a 12 year hiatus. Amongst civil unrest in Paris, the Steelers’ appeared the home team as towels twirled the stands of Stade de France, not unlike Dublin, Ireland last season.
The game was cleaner than the 16-10 score suggests, as the offense seemingly matched some of the “power football” Mike McCarthy indicated when hired as head coach. The Steelers amassed 148 rushing yards on 30 attempts, with the running back duo of Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle also combining for 81 receiving yards on 9 catches.
Injuries to an already underwhelming receiving room may have forced their hand, but leaning into this backfield duo should be a sign of things to come for the 5-2 Steelers. Wide receivers caught just 7 of Rodgers’ 30 pass attempts, just a week after combining for 22 receptions.
Although they scored only 16 points, the offense has shown their ability to be adaptable. Last week, the Steelers threw the ball 49 times to 22 rushes, while this week, it was a 30/30 split, both in wins. As the offense featured the run game early, including a 6-man offensive line, last weeks pass happy goal-to-go situation situation entered the mind. I doubted Rodgers’ would have the patience to stick with the run game, though I was wrong.
Red zone woes didn’t disappear though, as the Steelers finished 1 for 4, bailed out by Chris Boswell’s trusty(?) foot once again, connecting on all three field goal attempts. The lone touchdown was a fade to the massive receiver thankfully not named D.K. Metcalf. Darnell Washington showed how it was done.
High standards sometimes get in the way of recognizing a good Steelers defense. In a game where the offense struggled to punch the ball in the end zone, the defense did a great job defending it. The Saints finished 1-3 in the redzone, rushed for only 18 yards and scored just 10 points. Second year quarterback, Tyler Shough, completed 30/38 passes for 278 yards, dare i say, by design?
Patrick Graham is known around the NFL for adapting his defensive system to the talent at his disposal. The strength of the defense is undoubtedly the strong pass rush, while it’s weakness is the secondary’s inability to match up in man coverage. The secondary sat in a soft zone, while the rush forced a quick passing game. A ton of completions, with solid tackling, minimizing big plays and strong redzone efficiency is the defenses identity in 2026.
Studs and Duds
Studs
Patrick Queen and Payton Wilson
The often scrutinized linebacker duo were the stars of this defensive showing. They combined for 16 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack, 1 INT and 1 PBU that was very nearly another INT. They each flowed to the ball naturally in the run game, making sure tackles and impact plays in bunches.
Keanu Benton
Interior defensive lineman’s play doesn’t often show up on the stat sheet, but for Benton, it did. 3 tackles, 2 TFLs, and 1 PBU for the newly extended man in the middle. As Cam Heyward ages (showing no signs of slowing down), it appears that the next man up on the Steelers defensive line has made his mark. Benton’s aggressive, up field play style has shown through week after week in 2026.
Jaylen Warren could be on this list each week, but Sunday’s game was a mini coming out party for Rico Dowdle as a Steeler, who his finally healthy and running with authority. He ran hard, toting 9 carries for 41 yards but also displayed soft hands and reliability in the pass game catching all 6 targets for 45 yards. Dowdle’s share of touches is warranted and should continue.
Duds
Troy Fautanu and Max Iheanachor
“Duds” may be a little harsh, but neither were impressive, outside of a viral block made by Troy Fautanu. Rodgers was sacked 5 times, and although he’s partially to blame for some, the tackles generally didn’t hold up well in this contest. Fautanu and Iheanachor earned 58.4 and 61.9 pass blocking grades from PFF, respectively.
Playing 34 of 64 offensive snaps, Freiermuth was targeted only 4 times, catching 2 of them for 20 yards. The lowlight of the day was the target he didn’t catch. A beautifully layered pass from Rodgers that would have set the offense up inside the 5 with a goal-to-go situation, hadn’t Muth dropped it.
Final Thoughts
The Steelers are 5-2, and although the victories haven’t been impressive, they have been victories. The early portion of the schedule being the softest is good for a team with a new coaching staff, who has to find it’s identity before getting into the thick of the season. Each week, we see more of what the Steelers team wants to, and should be.
Next week, the Steelers will host the Cleveland Browns in battle for the top of the AFC North. The Browns aren’t an any more impressive 5-2 team than the Steelers. If this team is to be viewed as any kind of real contender for the division, this is a must win heading into the bye week.
