The Pittsburgh Steelers will take its 3-0 record on the road in Week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts. After a punishing win against the Los Angeles Chargers, Pittsburgh is eager to continue its fast start to the 2024 season. Can the Steelers avoid a trap game and instead make a statement along the way to a fourth win of the young season?
Steelers Eager For More Justin Fields
Justin Fields could tighten his grip on the Steelers’ starting quarterback job as Russell Wilson continues to battle a lingering calf injury. Wilson has missed practically all of training camp, practices, and most of the offseason workouts, leaving the door wide open for Fields to take advantage. With a 3-0 record, each win better than the last, the former Chicago Bears’ quarterback looks more and more like someone who can give Pittsburgh the best chance to win.
The Chargers had the NFL’s best defense coming into Week 3, yet Fields had his best game in black and gold against Los Angeles. Indianapolis won’t be the stout challenge that the team faced in Pittsburgh, so expect offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to open up the playbook and loosen the leash on the young passer. Fields is leading a progressing, forward-moving Pittsburgh offense, and if he can find a way to get the ball into the endzone more often, this could be a very dangerous team down the stretch.
Will Pittsburgh Make A Statement?
2024 is a prove-it season for Najee Harris, and considering he is already off to the best opening three weeks of his career, the former Alabama running back is moving with purpose. His partner in the backfield, Jaylen Warren, will miss Week 4 with a knee injury, so the rushing duo will be Harris and Cordarrelle Patterson. The Colts have one of the NFL’s worst rushing defenses, which should mean a productive day for anyone running the football.
Unlike Matt Canada, Smith is capable of building from one performance to the next, and Week 4 could be the game where he pulls out a variety of play-action. Fields present a consistent running threat, so some RPOs mixed in with more screens than the Steelers showed in the first three weeks. In the locker room, it has become a common understanding that the offense is on the verge of breaking out, and Sunday’s game against the Colts has all the makings of a statement victory for the Steelers.
Is Receiver Help Coming?
Roman Wilson was a healthy scratch in Week 3, but not because the rookie wide receiver wasn’t ready to go. The roster was specifically chosen to combat the Chargers’ strengths, but Indianapolis may not require the same kind of bulk that Pittsburgh needed against Los Angeles. After another full week of practice, though, Wilson wants to start making his mark on the offense, and a weak Colts’ defense seems like the perfect NFL debut.
Most of Pittsburgh’s passing offense has gone through George Pickens, except Calvin Austin III’s brilliant 55-yard score against the Chargers. Pickens is still making ridiculous catches and looming above opposing defenders, but he needs another receiver to pull focus if he wants to break out. Wilson hasn’t played a single professional snap yet, but if that changes on Sunday, he has very little competition to earn the spot opposite Pickens. The Steelers could still make a move for a receiver ahead of the trade deadline, but the team is hoping someone on the roster makes it so that isn’t needed.
Conclusion And Prediction
Each victory is all the more important when the second half of Pittsburgh’s 2024 season is considered. The strategy until the team’s Week 9 bye is to stockpile wins in any fashion necessary. A league-leading defense, a quarterback that is turning heads, a cohesive unit despite injuries, and a 3-0 record are all proof of a team already further ahead than most expected. A strong, statement win against the Colts would be another vital boost of confidence for a team that has found a way to succeed while still finding its identity.
The biggest challenge for the Steelers is to avoid falling into a typical Tomlin game where the team plays down to the opponent. So far, the 2024 Steelers haven’t shown the same signs of past groups, but a 4-0 record would go a long way to getting that monkey off the franchise’s back. Unless something drastic happens, Pittsburgh has a clear path to the fourth win of 2024.
Steelers 30 – Colts 13
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