Aaron Rodgers finally had time to breathe in the pocket, averaging 3.19 seconds to throw in Week 3, his highest mark ever as a Steeler, according to Ben Solak of ESPN. This huge jump came after the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 30-27, a win that felt totally different from the first two dismal weeks where Rodgers was pressured a whopping 37 times, ranking fourth most in the entire NFL.
McCarthy’s Bold O-Line Shake-Up
Head coach Mike McCarthy clearly saw enough of the offensive line struggles. He didn’t just tweak things; he made sweeping changes up front, pulling Spencer Anderson and Dylan Cook and inserting Brock Hoffman and rookie Max Iheanachor. Talk about guts! The immediate payoff was undeniable. With that extra time, Rodgers wasn’t just surviving; he was dealing. He launched 15 passes of 10+ yards downfield, also his most in a Steelers uniform. This isn’t the Steelers team of old that would just keep running the same plays and expecting different results for weeks on end. McCarthy isn’t Mike Tomlin, and he proved it by being proactive and making the necessary moves when they absolutely had to happen.
Run Game Suddenly Finds a Gear
It wasn’t just Rodgers getting a boost; the Steelers’ ground game finally showed up. After a pathetic combined 149 rushing yards over the first two games, Pittsburgh absolutely exploded for 138 rushing yards against the Bengals, with Jaylen Warren personally churning out 127 of those. Think about that: they went from ranking 27th in EPA per rush and 31st in rush success rate (per Sumer Sports) to fourth in EPA per rush and 11th in success rate in just one week! And get this: an 87-yard carry got wiped out by a questionable holding call, meaning those numbers could have been even crazier. Warren was especially effective when he rushed to the right side, tallying 39 yards on eight carries, nearly five yards a pop. This sudden burst of efficiency for the run game is a massive swing for an offense that looked totally stuck.
Immediate Defensive Adjustments
The coaching bravery wasn’t limited to offense, either. As Chris Carter of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette pointed out, the Steelers pulled Samuel off the field in favor of rookie third-round pick Daylen Everette. Why? Samuel was getting out-physicaled and struggling to contain Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Everette is bigger and offered a better size match-up. A veteran getting benched mid-game for a rookie? That’s the kind of decisive, in-game coaching we haven’t seen much of from this team in recent memory. McCarthy could have just sat there, hoping things would magically get better, but he didn’t. He saw what wasn’t working and got rid of it.
This Week 3 win wasn’t just about the score; it was about a coaching philosophy shift. McCarthy showed he’s willing to make the tough calls to win, even if it means benching veterans or overhauling the offensive line. The Steelers look like a different squad when their coach isn’t afraid to shake things up. What does this mean moving forward? It means they aren’t going to stick their heads in the sand if something is failing. That kind of willingness to adapt could be huge for this team as the season rolls on.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Behind the Steel Curtain.
Leave a Reply