With less than two hours until the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week 1 road test against the Atlanta Falcons, it was decided that Russell Wilson would not start at quarterback and Justin Fields would get the nod. Pittsburgh was led to a season-opening 18-10 victory by the grit of its incredibly talented defense and the leg of Chris Boswell. Despite not finding the endzone, there was plenty to like about what the Steelers did in Atlanta.
Justin Fields Shows A Steady Hand
It would have been a much different situation for Fields if Wilson hadn’t dealt with a calf injury since the controversial conditioning drill when training camp began. Thanks to Wilson missing time, Fields went into Sunday’s Week 1 contest with plenty of practice reps under his belt, and after a shaky start, that preseason and camp experience started to show. Fields didn’t light up the world by any means, and by many standards, he was underwhelming, but the Steelers didn’t need him to be Superman; he just needed not to lose the game.
A botched snap on the Steelers’ first offensive play had fans wincing early, but things evened out afterward. Fields didn’t turn the ball over, used his legs in a way Wilson wouldn’t have been able to, and emitted a calm demeanor the entire time. The result was a victory and an efficient game from someone who the Steelers could be looking to as the possible future under center.
Defensive Grit Ruled The Day
When a team spends $160.3 million on defense, the expectation is that the unit will be the focal point of the team and the reason for its victorious performance in challenging games. The Steelers’ offense didn’t find the endzone. George Pickens was the only Pittsburgh receiver with more than one catch, but the team still found itself 1-0 when the game finished. An enormous reason for that win was the remarkable, game-wrecking play of TJ Watt.
Watt had three hits on the quarterback, one sack, two tackles for loss, and recovered a fumble, but the truth is that his impact on the direction of the game didn’t fully show up on the stat sheet. The officiating, which was disastrous through all four quarters, took away two strip sacks from Watt and disrupted the pace more than once. Still, Watt showed that he is still as dynamic as ever, with the former Defensive Player of the Year and his defense holding Atlanta to 51 offensive yards, three first downs, and no points in the second half, which lifted the Steelers to a Week 1 win.
Chris Boswell Earns His Money
The man known as the Wizard of Boz in Pittsburgh did something that no kicker in franchise history has ever done: he made three field goals of more than fifty yards in one game. Boswell, the 11th-highest-paid kicker in the NFL ($4.7 million average for the next three seasons), made all six field goals he tried against the Falcons. He was responsible for all of Pittsburgh’s 18 points on the day and did so from everywhere on the field.
Boswell connected on kicks from 57 yards, 51 yards, 44 yards, 56 yards, 40 yards, and 25 yards. With Arthur Smith rolling out a new offense, Fields getting the news that he would start barely hours before the game kicked off, and no touchdowns, Boswell was needed, and he stepped up with flying colors. Pittsburgh doesn’t want to have games where they lean fully on the kicker to win, but after 2023, fans will take the positivity where it comes.
Week 1 Wrap Up
Pickens tallied 85 receiving yards, but he looked like a man among boys. Standout punter Cameron Johnston is out for the season with a knee injury, which led to the Steelers signing Corliss Waitman as the punter moving forward. Waitman has played with the Steelers before, but the loss of Johnston is not insignificant by any means. Najee Harris had a solid start to the season despite some blocking issues causing hits in the backfield, but 70 yards on 20 carries is what the team needed for this matchup. Jaylen Warren seemed on a pitch count, leading to Cordarrelle Patterson in the backup role.
Donte Jackson and DeShon Elliot’s interceptions came from the pressure of Pittsburgh’s front seven, but the secondary certainly rose to the occasion as a unit. The challenge with Kirk Cousins, Atlanta’s $180-million quarterback, was whether the Steelers’ defensive backs could shut down Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and second-year running back Bijan Robinson. The Atlanta trio couldn’t battle through Pittsburgh’s defense, with the usually-electric London held to 15 yards on two catches as he was watched closely by Joey Porter Jr.
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