PHILADELPHIA -- Much of this week at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex has focused on the Steelers' offense needing to get better, mainly because multiple players have been critical about the lack of chunk plays in a struggling offense.
And when Matt Canada said the offense was getting closer to where they want to be, and added that he thinks this offense can be 'tremendous,' that was all the fans needed to pop off yet again on every platform imaginable.
While some of those players have been publicly critical, one of the team captains not only decided to back his offensive coordinator, but publicly call out his teammates for pointing the finger.
"We're close," Najee Harris said Friday. "We're close. We need to fix some s–t."
That "s–t" is the players essentially throwing anybody else under the bus for the offense ranking near the bottom of the league in several major categories. He doesn't believe the players should be going to the media to air out any grievances or dirty laundry. Rather, anything that needs to be said should be said behind closed doors, man to man.
"Some things, it stays between the team," Harris said. "We talk to each other between the team. We see what's going on here as a team. It's not something we want to talk about towards the media. It's not like it's anything bad. If we want to get where we're at, if we want to achieve, there has to be more accountability among the players. I think that starts with us."
By no means is Harris saying players should keep their mouths shut or that complaints shouldn't be made. However, from the time where fans and media were harping on Mitch Trubisky's play, Harris has consistently stressed the team's need to stick together and figure this out together.
He knew the transition from a future Hall of Fame quarterback to eventually Kenny Pickett was going to require time and patience. And if there's anything that's really going to test the patience of a football team, it's a 2-5 start to the season, especially in a place such as Pittsburgh where it's always "Super Bowl or bust." Urgency heightens. Nobody will admit it, but panic might set in even just a little bit.
But, Harris has pretty much required a united front from his teammates, and this week has been anything but that. That doesn't sit right with the second-year running back. He wants the attitude to come in the correct form.
"The attitude is how men talk to each other. You can take it bad, or you can take it good. It's only coming from a good place. We don't mean it any bad way," Harris said. "We're just trying to win games, come together as a team and turn stuff around. Hearing stuff that you might not want to hear is probably what we need. We need accountability on this team from the players. We need to execute more. We need to do better rather than blame other people. That starts with us."
Even though he's only in his second year, Harris is one of the captains on this year's team. His teammates voted for him to be a captain. Say what you will about the lack of production, but somebody coming forward and taking the reins like that might be what this team needs in these circumstances.
After all, it's much harder to be successful if you're fighting each other.
It's a new challenge for Harris to be in this position. He doesn't have the skins on the wall to point to when he calls out his teammates for something he feels needs calling out. Of course, he might not have to call anybody out if things were going right. If the team didn't lose its best player in Week 1, or any of the other cascading events that have led to a horrid start to the season.
But, that's not where the Steelers are. They are 2-5, and struggling to find a way to take a significant step forward.
"It's easy to be a captain when you are winning. It's easy to be a leader when you are winning," Harris said. "I think you shouldn't be judged at that. You should be judged when you are in the position you are now. Going out there to practice every day and not pointing the finger is a starting point. Putting your head down and keep grinding and chopping wood."
The Steelers face a very tall task Sunday when they travel to Philadelphia to take on the undefeated Eagles. The Steelers never play well in Philly, and they're 11-point underdogs. The road to building trust in each other has had more potholes in it than any street in Pittsburgh. And, it's possible this team takes more lumps against the Eagles.
They obviously would love to steal a win heading into the bye week. But, win or lose, Harris wants to make sure that this team sticks together going forward. He truly believes this rough stretch can help galvanize this group in the long run. They just have to have each other's backs first.
"I am glad that I am here, in this position where there is a lot of adversity, humps and mistakes," Harris said. "That is what makes good players and good teams. This is a process. This is a part of the process. This is where we are at right now. We're in that road and process where when you come together as a team and capitalize on mistakes and hold each other accountable. I wouldn't take back anything. I like where I am. You just have to learn. It's part of the process. It's part of the sport."
THE ESSENTIALS
• Who: Steelers vs. Eagles (-11)
• What: Week 8, regular season
• When: Sunday, 1:02 p.m.
• Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
• Weather: 60°, 24% chance of rain, 8 mph wind
• TV: CBS (national), KDKA-TV (local)
• Radio: 102.5 WDVE, ESPN Pittsburgh
• Streaming: Steelers Nation Radio
• Satellite: Sirius XM 385, online 826
• Boxscore: DKPS
• Team media guides: Steelers | Eagles
• Official game notes: Steelers | Eagles
THE INJURY REPORT
• Steelers: CB Levi Wallace (shoulder) and DT Larry Ogunjobi (knee) did not practice all week and are OUT. CB Josh Jackson (groin) and K Chris Boswell (groin) were initially questionable for Sunday, but both were downgraded to OUT on Saturday. Jackson was limited Thursday and Friday, while Boswell popped up on the injury report Friday. CB Ahkello Witherspoon (hamstring), DT Montravius Adams (hamstring), WR Steven Sims (hamstring), TE Pat Freiermuth (ankle) and DT Cam Heyward (vet rest) are cleared to play Sunday.
The Steelers signed K Nick Sciba to the practice squad, elevated him and DT Carlos Davis to the Active/Inactive roster. WR Josh Malone was also released from the practice squad.
• Eagles: DE Brandon Graham (hamstring) did not practice Wednesday, was limited Thursday and Friday, and is listed as QUESTIONABLE. G Isaac Seumalo (ankle, rest), CB Josh Jobe (shoulder) and T Lane Johnson (concussion) were on the injury report all three days, but are cleared to play Sunday.
THE KEY VARIABLE
We do this section every week, but if there is a key variable that outweighs all the others, it's this week.
After returning to practice and starting his 21-day window to return from injured reserve, T.J. Watt had a legitimate chance to play Sunday in Philadelphia, and it would have been a huge boost for a defense that has struggled mightily in getting after the quarterback.
Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, Watt was not activated by Saturday's 4:00 p.m. deadline. He will not return until after the bye week.
Pittsburgh has ended the past five seasons atop the NFL leaderboard in sacks. However, they've only recorded 12 sacks in seven games, only three more than the Lions and Raiders who sit at the bottom of the league. What's more, seven of those 12 sacks came in Week 1 at Cincinnati, the only game Watt has played this season.
That's five sacks in six games. That's abysmal.
"We do need to get more pressure," Teryl Austin said this week. "I think part of it is (things like) the RPO, part of it is we’ve just got to do a better job of rushing and getting home. Maybe we’ve got to do a couple of different things scheme wise to help our guys get there. But it’s a concern in the sense that we’re not getting a lot of pressure, but we are disruptive. We’re causing some quarterback hurries and we’re getting in a position to intercept the ball, and we’re not catching them."
That part is true. The Steelers dropped four catchable interceptions in the loss to the Dolphins, and two of them would have taken six points away from Miami. In addition, the Steelers are not blitzing as often as they would like to help compensate for the injuries that have plagued the secondary.
Even at less than 100 percent, Watt's presence alone would free up others on the defensive front. Alex Highsmith cashed in on that opportunity with three sacks in the one game Watt's played. And without Larry Ogunjobi, the front will lose one of their better players.
But, there was ever a guarantee Watt would play. Without him, this front will need to figure out a way to stop a dangerous mobile quarterback in Jalen Hurts. The Eagles' quarterback has had a great year thus far, completing 66.8 percent of his passes while averaging 8.2 yards per attempt. He's also racked up 293 yards on the ground with six rushing touchdowns.
Hurts also has dangerous weapons in the passing game with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith at receiver and Dallas Goedert at tight end.
Sunday will be a tall order, no matter who lines up on Pittsburgh's side of the ball.
"Coach Tomlin always says 'the Standard is the Standard,' so no matter who's in, we've got to produce," Highsmith said this week. "We've just got to keep talking and keep communicating, because when we do that, we know what each other's doing, it makes us an effective rush unit."
THE HISTORY LESSON
The Steelers and Eagles have a long history together. Since 1933, the two teams have faced off a total of 80 times, with Philadelphia winning 49 of the games and three ending in a tie.
However, since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970, the Steelers and Eagles have only played each other 13 times as the Steelers were one of three existing NFL teams to move over to the newly formed AFC while the Eagles remained in the NFC. Even so, the Eagles have still held the advantage in the cross-state rivalry, winning eight of those 13 matchups.
What's more, the Steelers have played horribly in Philadelphia for nearly six decades. The last time Pittsburgh traveled to Eastern Pennsylvania was 2016, and the Steelers were embarrassed, 31-3. The time before that, Ben Roethlisberger was sacked nine times as the Steelers were defeated, 15-6, though Pittsburgh went on to win their sixth Lombardi Trophy that season in Super Bowl XLIII.
The last time the Steelers won in Philadelphia was Oct. 24, 1965. Despite being outgained in total yards, 388-132, and converting eight first downs while the Eagles converted 20, Pittsburgh won the game, 20-14. Philadelphia turned the ball over five times, and two of the turnovers directly resulted in touchdowns for the Steelers. A 4-yard touchdown pass from Bill Nelsen to Mike Lind gave the Steelers some added cushion to secure the victory.
Though the game was played in Pittsburgh, I'd be remiss to not mention the matchup in 2004. Just as it will be this Sunday, the Steelers faced an undefeated Eagles team with a rookie quarterback. This is when Roethlisberger and the Steelers knocked off the undefeated Patriots and undefeated Eagles in back-to-back weeks en route to a 15-1 record.
Hines Ward played a big role in the game, scoring the first two touchdowns, and gave everyone a highlight to be played for eternity. After one of the touchdowns, he set the ball down, put one foot on top of it and flapped his arms like an Eagle, which mocked Terrell Owens' patented celebration when he was in Philadelphia.
The Steelers won the game handily, 27-3. However, both the Patriots and Eagles had the last laugh as those two teams met in that season's Super Bowl. New England got their revenge with a 41-27 whipping of the top-seeded Steelers in the AFC Championship Game, then went on to beat the Eagles to secure their third Lombardi Trophy in four years.
THE MAIN MATCHUP
There are a lot of different ways you can go here. The Eagles are vastly superior in just about every facet of the game. However, the defensive front of the Eagles is very, very dangerous.
"From (our) offensive perspective, it starts first and foremost with their front and how we minimize their impact on the game," Tomlin said Tuesday. "Guys like Fletcher Cox and Javon [Hargrave] are catalysts for what goes on over there. You couple that with Jordan Davis, who they drafted in round one, I mean, it’s tough sledding inside and up front versus this group."
Tomlin also paid a huge compliment to Brandon Graham, saying he called him a "little LaMarr Woodley" when he came out of Michigan. You may have seen in the injury report that Graham is questionable for Sunday's matchup. But, before you think the Steelers might dodge a bullet in case he's inactive, Philadelphia traded for Chicago's Robert Quinn during the week, which bolsters an already stout defensive front.
The Eagles are one of seven teams that have five different defensive players with multiple sacks. As a team, Philadelphia has the eighth most sacks in the league. They are also tied for eighth in the NFL with 64 quarterback pressures, despite only blitzing 24.8 percent of the time. All of that comes before Quinn comes into the fold.
"They run deep up front," Tomlin added. "They’ve got quality players. They’ve invested a lot in them. They’ve got quality depth, and those guys provide the wave that the rest of their group rides. They’re fundamentalist, they do a good job of keeping a lid on it."
Facing an elite defensive front is always challenging for a rookie quarterback. It's even more challenging when the secondary behind them is great in coverage. It's no accident that Philadelphia's pass defense is best in the NFL at completion rate (58.6) and second-best with 5.5 yards per pass attempt.
Pickett has been a bit jittery in the pocket, but that's expected with a rookie quarterback. Now, he'll likely have less time to get the ball out where his receivers are more likely to be tightly covered.
As with most things in football, the game can be won and lost in the battle up front. With Philadelphia having a front that can both stop the run and pressure the quarterback, the Steelers are in for a long day. If they can find a way to get one area of the offense running efficiently, it likely begins with winning the battle in the trenches.
They did that against Tampa Bay, and that allowed Pickett and Trubisky to make enough plays on offense. But, this is a whole different challenge.
"I think they're better than Tampa's defensive front. They're really good," James Daniels said this week. "(Cox) is big. He's strong. He's been playing at a high level for a really long time. He's probably one of the best defensive tackles the league has ever seen. I'm pretty excited to get a chance to play against him."
10 DATA POINTS
• The Eagles are far and away the best in the league in time of possession at 33:59. The Steelers average only 29 minutes per game.
• Since 1940, the Eagles are the only team with 14 or more takeaways and two or fewer giveaways through the first six games of the season.
• The Eagles are plus-56 in point differential. The Steelers are minus-55.
• These numbers are almost identical, just in the opposite way. Philadelphia's offense is producing 5.6 yards per play compared to 4.8 by the Steelers. On the flip side, the Eagles defense surrenders just 4.7 yards per play. Pittsburgh gives up 5.7.
• Since the 1970 NFL merger, rookie quarterbacks have won just three of 15 meetings against teams that entered the game with a record of 6-0 or better. As pointed out in the history lesson, two of those three wins belong to Roethlisberger.
• Despite the high YPA, only 7.1 percent of Hurts' passes have traveled 20 or more yards downfield. That is ahead of only three other starting quarterbacks this year.
• Hurts, Pickett and Trubisky are all getting rid of the ball right around the same average time. Hurts is averaging 2.76 seconds from snap to throw while both Pickett and Trubisky's average is 2.75 seconds.
• Since 2021, the Steelers produce a sack on 9.9 percent of the dropbacks when Watt plays, and only 5 percent when he doesn't.
• Highsmith has 6.5 of the Steelers' 12 sacks, tying for fourth in the NFL.
• Johnson has been targeted 67 times this season, but only hauled in 38 receptions. He's been charged with only two drops.
THE FANTASY CORNER
I had a better week with my DraftKings lineup, scoring 109.98 points, but it's still not good enough. I also won my fifth straight game after starting 0-2 in the league where I'm commissioner. So, I'm tapping into some more magic from my five-game winning streak for this week. Here's my lineup for Week 8 (with a $50,000 salary cap on DraftKings):
• QB: Daniel Jones, Giants ($5,700)
• RB1: Kenneth Walker III, Seahawks ($6,500)
• RB2: Raheem Mostert, Dolphins ($5,900)
• WR1: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions ($6,900)
• WR2: DeVonta Smith, Eagles ($6,300)
• WR3: Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers ($6,100)
• TE: Pat Freiermuth, Steelers ($3,900)
• FLEX: Najee Harris, Steelers ($5,700)
• DEF/ST: Patriots ($3,000)
I flat out dropped Tom Brady for Jones in my league. Jones isn't a sexy pick, but he's been pretty consistent all season. Nothing too high or too low, and I like that for only $5,700. I'm going back to Walker after a monster week, and I'm bringing Mostert back as he's now my RB2 in my league as the undisputed lead back in Miami. Even after a really bad week, I still believe St. Ramon is worth the investment, especially paired with Smith facing the Steelers' secondary and Aiyuk's increased role in the 49ers' offense.
I may get some pushback for choosing two Steelers, but here's my rationale. Most likely, the Steelers will be playing from behind, which puts Freiermuth in a good spot for volume. That sounds like a reason to not draft Najee, but two of his three touchdowns have come in the air. As he continues to regain form after fully recovering from the foot injury, he also may get more involved in the passing game. Since Philadelphia will likely take away the deep part of the field, underneath stuff might be what the Steelers have to settle for.
