The Steelers came out strong in the first half of their season opener, mainly on the defensive side of the ball. On the other hand, their offense didn’t really impress much in their matchup with the Bengals. On top of that, injuries came late in the game which made the overtime period a bit harder.
Staunch First Half Defense
Pittsburgh came out of the gates tenaciously. In the first half, they forced four turnovers including three interceptions and one forced fumble and recovery.
CLAMPS HEYWARD SIGHTING 👀@CamHeyward | 📺 #PITvsCIN on CBS | NFL+ https://t.co/E0NYNUzFXC pic.twitter.com/sFOKH0W6tr
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) September 11, 2022
They were led up front by Cam Heyward and reigning DPOY TJ Watt. Heyward targeted rookie left guard, Cordell Volson, all game long and often got pressure on Joe Burrow.
Although, we saw the Steelers seem to let up a bit in the second half. They went into the half up 17-6 but ended up allowing the Bengals back into the game, a big reason for that being penalties. Cornerback, Cameron Sutton, was given the job of guarding big-time threat, Ja’Marr Chase, and in a crucial stage of the game, gave up a huge pass interference call downfield. Unfortunately, because of the penalties and possible fatigue, the Steelers ended up being outscored 14-3 and being forced to overtime.
Offensive Struggles
Although the Steelers defense played well overall, their offense was practically non-existent. A lot of this had to deal with the offensive line. The Steelers were a non-factor in the run game which made it easy to gameplan against down the stretch. The Bengals held them to just 75 yards on the ground, with wide receiver, Chase Claypool, rushing for a team high 36 yards.
Even though the Steelers didn’t do anything great offensively, they didn’t do anything awful. While only putting up 258 yards of total offense to the Bengals 439, they didn’t have any turnovers.
Crucial Injuries
In the late stages of the game, the Steelers became troubled with a few big injuries. Unfortunately, one TJ Watt is included in this list. As he was rushing the pass in overtime, Watt seemed to have torn his pectoral muscle while trying to bring Burrow to the ground. He appeared to say, “I tore my pec,” while walking off the field after the play.
“I tore my pec”
Please no. Don’t take TJ Watt from us pic.twitter.com/wbXqSAtDTf
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) September 11, 2022
Another injury that came in the overtime portion of the game was one to Najee Harris. As he got tackled on a rushing attempt, his leg was awkwardly caught under a defender. Harris missed a good portion of the preseason with a Lisfranc injury to the same foot he seemed to be favoring. Luckily, he did jog off the field on his own so hopefully that is a good sign.
We will get more information on these injuries in the coming days. Hopefully, they won’t keep two crucial Steelers out for too long.
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