Lessons from the Steelers in Week 6: Did Pittsburgh unlock the secret to igniting Najee Harris?

The Pittsburgh Steelers stopped the bleeding, with a 32-13 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. Despite the tourniquet, they could still lose the arm. By that, I mean Justin Fields who threw for a meager 145 yards and zero touchdowns. But for one week, he quelled the growing concerns over his play.

Right now, QB wins are his best stat and Las Vegas was the perfect opponent for a franchise riding a two-game losing streak, missing several key pieces at a vital position for their scheme, featuring a running back in a tailspin and whose top receiver is imploding.

Sunday’s light work was an opportunity for everyone to revamp their confidence and generate good vibes in the locker room. Expectations were high for this week. The Raiders are one of the league’s messiest situations and to compound it, they threw Aidan O’Connell out into the lion’s den as a sacrificial lamb against one of the league’s best defenses. 

What resulted was a dominating win over a vastly inferior opponent. This is how the Steelers should have performed for four quarters against the Indianapolis Colts, but Mike Tomlin's teams don’t let banked wins against bottom-dwellers slip away twice. However, there’s always a lesson to be gleaned–even when TJ Watt, Najee Harris and Justin Fields are dishing out lessons to an outclassed Raider team. 

TJ Watt is still the NFL’s premier defensive player

On Friday, TJ Watt crossed the threshold into his 30s. There's a rude awakening for all the offensive linemen who thought he’d slow down or the analysts who believed he’d get surpassed by up-and-coming defenders by now. There’s no denying who the Steelers MVP is in 2024. Watt runs away with it every year. He’s still the greatest defensive game-changer today. Myles Garrett, Nick Bosa, Maxx Crosby, Micah Parsons, and Chris Jones should stand in line behind the BMOC.

The Raiders' pass protection scheme was able to fixate on neutralizing Watt on passing downs due to the Steelers depleted core of outside linebackers. Even without DeMarvin Leal, Nate Herbig, and Alex Highsmith, Watt was still expected to record at least two sacks or force one fumble in this week’s bold predictions. That forecast came to fruition for the Steelers and some. Watt was a one-man wrecking crew. Even without passing rushing support, KiloWatt electrified and tilted this game on its axis as a run defender. Two punchouts resulting in fumbles swung the score dramatically in Pittsburgh’s favor.  What can’t he do? 

The first occurred just before halftime when rookie Dylan Laube took the handoff and Watt's punchout put the Steelers in an immediate scoring position. The second occurred at the Steelers' 1-yard-line when Watt connected with a clean hook on the ball in Ameer Abdullah’s possession as he sprinted past the right tackle allowing Steeler safety DeShon Elliott to recover.

Those pair of plays put the Steelers in position for an early touchdown drive and scratched a touchdown off of Las Vegas’ wide of the board. A 14-point swing in a 19-point win is all the difference between a blowout in the fourth quarter and a nailbiter.  This isn’t the first time, Watt has carried the Steelers to a win, but his Defensive Player of the Year candidacy should pick up steam after this one.

Justin Fields is an excellent game manager, but nothing more

Watching Lamar Jackson and rookie Jayden Daniels zip passes into airtight windows, convert fourth downs in the endzone, and sling it across for the field for 600 combined yards felt like a Chessmaster and a chess prodigy chasing checkmate for four quarters. Fields, on the other hand, excels at playing backgammon. He has become a more than capable game manager and against one of the most inept defenses in the NFL, he was able to pick his spots. 

As I expected in this week’s bold predictions, the Steelers had a rare comfortable win. Fields ran for a pair of touchdowns but only threw for 145 yards. At a superficial level, he was fantastic. He did throw one pick, but it was nullified by a questionable roughing the passer call. Fields’ production was mitigated by a few factors. He did have several inaccurate throws, but a 51-yard deep ball to Pickens was called back by a holding penalty. More importantly, the defense, Najee Harris’ best game toting the rock of the season, and even Nate Herbig’s replacement Jeremiah Moon blocking a punt allowed Fields to fade into the background. 

His greatest contributions were with his legs where he dashed into the endzone for a pair of scores. It’s not fair to look ahead, but real tests await him. The Steelers must grapple with an age-old quarterback question in the long run. Is an offensive caretaker the best this franchise can do for their offense? Pittsburgh’s schedule becomes a gauntlet from this point forward, and while their nose for turnovers has helped them win countless contests. He may have done enough to keep his starting role temporarily, but for how long is anyone’s guess.

Tomlin should give Marshawn Lynch a job on his staff

Until Sunday, the only Steeler to rush for a touchdown was quarterback, Justin Fields. As poorly as Harris had run between the tackles, he’s been less effective in the red zone. Harris is in a contract year, so any sign of life is a positive for him. Consecutive weeks of lifeless running for Harris had Steeler Nation pining for the return of Cordarrelle Patterson and Jaylen Warren. 

On Sunday, Harris ran like a ballistic missile through Raider defenders en route to 106 yards on the ground alone. His all-purpose yardage provided a cushion, but that’s not what the Steelers demand of him. Patterson and Warren can reel in dump-off passes and rumble forward. Pittsburgh needs to see more runs like the 36-yard scamper through congestion and into the open field along the sideline, ending in a Superman dive into the endzone. 

He juked defenders onto their backs. He emptied the whole bag of moves on would-be Raiders tacklers so devastatingly that you could wonder where this has been all season. The hope is that he and the offensive line can repeat this, although that may get more complicated by rookie center Zach Frazier hobbling off the field.

Harris' mentor Marshawn Lynch being in attendance may have played a part in Harris' eruption. He was also on the field a year ago when Harris rumbled for 122 yards against another former Lynch team, the Seahawks in Week 17. Tomlin might want to consider adding him to the staff if his presence provides this much of a boost to Harris's output.

You would have thought Harris was prime Marshawn on the field instead of the back averaging fewer than 65 yards rushing and 3.9 yards per carry this season. The Steelers will need Harris to run as angrily for the next dozen weeks if they’re going to make another playoff berth and there's one man he seems to respond to.