Russ is back... and the Pittsburgh Steelers find a new formula

Mike Tomlin doesn't need to muck games up anymore. Russell Wilson torched Cincinnati on Sunday. And at 9-3, Pittsburgh is quickly becoming the top challenger to Buffalo and Kansas City in the AFC.

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The chorus was so deafening that it became borderline uncomfortable. Everyone in Pittsburgh, Pa., wanted the offensive coordinator gone. “FIRE CANADA” chants didn’t only take over Acrisure Stadium. Fans filling the Pittsburgh Penguins’ barn were soon screaming those two words with the same rhythmic clap, clap, CLAP/CLAP/CLAP in-between. Nonetheless, Mike Tomlin stood by Matt Canada for 44 games over three seasons.

Those Steelers famously endured a run of 58 straight games without a 400-yard game on offense.

To this day, key starters on that offense still don’t understand it. They loved Tomlin as a boss. They view him as one of the smartest football minds they’ve ever met. But his loyalty is both a virtue and a blind spot. Virtually everyone could see Canada’s scheme was both bland and predictable. Defenses knew exactly what was coming.

Nor did Pittsburgh have a quarterback capable of rendering those X’s and O’s nil. After a fun run of fourth-quarter comebacks in ’22, Kenny Pickett flopped in ’23.

Finally, Tomlin listened to those jeers. But this was the plan? His 2024 system reboot on offense felt like myopic thrifting.

The new OC (Arthur Smith) thought he could win games with Desmond Ridder in Atlanta and the two new quarterbacks were treated by most of the NFL as poison. Denver ate $85 million in dead money to boot Russell Wilson out of the building. Justin Fields’ trade market was a colossal flop. Usually, you get what you pay for at the most important position in sports. It takes premium draft capital or a ballsy (and costly) trade to think Super Bowl. In the conference of Mahomes and Allen and Burrow and Lamar and Stroud, this reeked of a cockamamie plan to squeeze together more 17-13 wins. Yet Week 13 of the NFL hinted once again that Tomlin sees a different game than everyone else. Kirk Cousins, costing $45M per year, threw four interceptions. Former No. 1 pick Trevor Lawrence, who inked a record-setting deal worth $55M per year, saw his Jaguars fall to 2-10. Aaron Rodgers, making $37.5M per year, was dreadful again. All he did was get everyone fired this season. The Jets are 3-9. No functioning franchise should seek his services for 2025.

And here’s the 36-year-old Wilson enjoying a career day in a 44-38 win at Cincinnati at the price of $1.2 million. He accounts for 0.47 percent of the team’s cap.

Crossing midfield was often a Transatlantic voyage for the Steelers in ’21, ’22 and ’23.

Now, they’re winning shootouts vs. Joe Burrow.

Wilson was magnificent, completing 29 of 38 passes for 414 yards with three touchdowns. He only threw an interception because the officials missed cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt WWE-rip George Pickens to the turf by the helmet. Ten different players caught a pass. His feel for pressure. His touch layering throws downfield. His accuracy. This looked like the Wilson who threw 40 touchdowns four years ago in Seattle. Ironically enough, that’s when Ben Roethlisberger started to break down. Since then, Tomlin has been hunting for ways to hide his quarterback. Nobody can max out a roster like him.

The Steelers don’t need to hide Wilson. Maxing out this offense could lead to a legitimate run through the AFC playoffs. The obvious heavyweights in the conference are the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs. But as the calendar flips to December, the Steelers are positioning themselves as the top challenger.

Let’s all pour ourselves another cup of coffee and reheat our plates of crow for breakfast.

Cincinnati’s defense is wretched. Hard to believe this team once turned Patrick Mahomes into Brodie Croyle at Arrowhead in an AFC Championship Game. But it’s also true that Burrow has been exceptional all season and — in full-fledged desperation mode — would try to bait Pittsburgh into an arcade game.

This time, Tomlin didn’t try to muddy the game up. He was much obliged.

“It’s always a challenge — the intimacy of these divisional relationships,” Tomlin said afterward. “We know them. They know us. But I just thought our group smiled in the face of it, particularly Russ. It’s the first time for him going through this AFC North football. I thought he acclimated himself well today. He put himself squarely in the history of this series with that performance today.

“We wanted to come out and attack because we knew what they could give us. That’s what I mean about the depths of these waters in these divisional relationships. It’s not checkers. It’s chess.”

Nobody can muck games up with blocked kicks, 35+ rushing attempts and strip-sacks with three minutes remaining quite like Tomlin. He has discovered new ways to keep a game close and steal it late. That’s a fine character trait for any team. Never forget that he somehow had an 8-8 season with Devlin “Duck” Hodges under center. All aspiring contenders must be able to win ugly. But at some point the last few years, the Ugly Win became the Steelers’ default mode. And when this is your default, the ceiling is forever one-and-done in the postseason.

Wilson, plus Smith, plus an ascending Pickens have allowed Tomlin to consciously evolve his thinking. He no longer needs to micromanage games through a conservative lens.

Since his Steelers debut on Oct. 20, Wilson has been taking shots all over the field. His 8.7 yards per attempt ranks No. 2 in the entire NFL, just behind Jared Goff (8.8) and far better than the 23rd-ranked Mahomes (7.0) and 20th-ranked C.J. Stroud (7.2).

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No wonder the head coach looks happier, sounds happier and — at the fleeting mention of 2023 during his postgame presser — quickly snapped: “I don’t care about last year.” A modernized offense with a playmaking quarterback can brighten up everyone’s mood. Inside the visitor’s locker room, running back Najee Harris filmed himself dancing with Tomlin and even poked fun at “Mr. Unlimited.” All a stunning departure from the dreary scenes that reigned last season. Offensive frustration wasn’t reserved for the 68,400 filling the home stadium. Harris appeared to be at his wits’ end after the 13-10 loss in Cleveland that got Canada fired. “There’s just a lot of stuff that goes around that you guys don’t see,” Harris told reporters. “I’m at a point, man, where I’m just tired of this shit.” Those Steelers were 6-4, but he admitted the record was misleading. “Winning how we did,” Harris added, “is not gonna get us nowhere.” He was right.

All hopeful contenders must sharpen their winning formula by December. These Steelers are 9-3, and the record feels real.

A defense that ranks fourth against the run is still fueled by playmakers capable of stealing possessions. T.J. Watt volleyball-swatted the ball out of Burrow’s hand on one strip-sack, Cam Heyward tipped a ball that was intercepted and linebacker Nick Herbig (filling in for Alex Highsmith) supplied the play of the game. At the start of the fourth quarter, Herbig knocked the ball out of Burrow’s right hand for another fumble. Rookie Payton Wilson scooped it, scored it.

Watt leads the NFL with five forced fumbles. Herbig, also the pride of Wisconsin, is next with four.

The Steelers just might’ve hit the jackpot on a linebacker. Again.

On offense, the Steelers are averaging 390 yards per game since Wilson took over. They’re still battering opponents on the ground with both muscle (Harris) and speed (Jaylen Warren). And now the Steelers can play that aforementioned game of chess through the air. Tomlin said Pittsburgh wanted to get the Bengals out of its “spot-drop zones.” Wilson dumped the ball off to his backs — repeatedly — and forced the Bengals to switch to man. Which opened up the downfield shots.

The last time the Steelers were dictating the terms of a high-scoring affair to this degree, Antonio Brown was a force of stability.

We’ll learn more about Wilson very soon. After a Browns rematch, Pittsburgh travels to Philly and Baltimore before hosting the Chiefs. Unlike seasons past, the head coach doesn’t need to concoct wacky ways to stay in these games.

I don’t want to run the risk of breaking precious “codes,” but it’s clear now that the disastrous 2022 season with Nathaniel Hackett only fooled people into thinking Wilson was washed. Hackett’s offense was that abysmal. Pairing Wilson with Sean Payton, in 2023, was akin to fitting a square peg in a round hole. Payton wants a quarterback who’ll play on time from the pocket — Bo Nix. That’s never been Wilson’s game. He needs to make plays on the move. Sunday was proof that he’s got juice left in both his arm and his legs. His touch on a 23-yard touchdown to Calvin Austin was perfect. He lofted another signature moon ball to Pickens. His best play? That’d be a 25-yard scoring strike to Pat Freiermuth to make this a two-score game. On second and five, he had the instincts to scramble back inside when end Sam Hubbard was in his face.

Before getting smacked by another Bengal defender, Wilson ripped it to his tight end across his body.

“We needed all 44 of those points today, didn’t we?” Tomlin says. “You’re playing against Joe Burrow and company, you’re going to have to score some points.”

Lost in all of the viral cornball moments is the reality that Russell Wilson works his ass off. The dedication is very real. Tomlin said he hopes everyone is paying attention to his quarterback’s level of “professionalism.” And it’s probably no coincidence that Tomlin also had a message for his mercurial receiver in the same media session.

Pickens drew two more unsportsmanlike penalties against the Bengals. Once for demonstrably dropping the ball on a defender after a catch and run. Then again for pretending to shoot a gun. The latter flag is the NFL’s latest hypocritical governmental overreach. The announcers themselves were describing this game as a “shootout.”

Yet, players know the silly and stupid precedent by now. Officials are cracking down.

“These divisional games are big,” Tomlin said. “He’s got a target on his back because he’s George. He understands that. But he’s got to grow up and he’s got to grow up in a hurry.”

That’s always been Tomlin’s strength. The same coach who dances with his players can tell tackle Broderick Jones “Shut your ass up!” on his way into the locker room and send such a stern message to one of his top talents.

Urgency should be high. These Steelers have a legitimate chance to play in New Orleans this February.

No Huddle

• Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair drilled his forearm brace directly into the head of a sliding Lawrence. This is one of the dirtiest hits you’ll see in any era. As concussion expert Chris Nowinski pointed out, Lawrence’s stiff arms and legs were a “fencing response”— a sign that the quarterback was knocked out. Al-Shaair shouldn’t receive a paycheck until Lawrence is cleared. This was disgusting stuff. This also isn’t the first time, Al-Shaair crossed the line.

• Call him Sam Brady. After enduring Jets Hell — and being written off as a bust — Sam Darnold is genuinely unshaken by anything that happens through the course of a game. In his mind, he’s never the victim. Backup Nick Mullens made the point on our trip to Eagan. “It’s a strength,” Mullens said. “Go back and look at the way the games have flowed. If adversity has hit, he’s done a great job of bouncing back.” Since throwing three interceptions in a win over Jacksonville, Darnold has gotten right back on track. He delivered in the fourth quarter again to edge Arizona, 23-22. This time, it was an eight-play, 70-yard TD drive. He laced a 12-yarder to Justin Jefferson on fourth and 5 from Arizona’s 33, then connected with Aaron Jones for the game-winner. It was the same story in Chicago one week ago. Darnold is unflappable. I tend to agree with my podcast co-host Bob McGinn — he’s forcing the Vikings’ hand long term. Check out the anticipation on this completion to Jordan Addison. All those reps in all those games added up in NY and Carolina, even if they were mostly miserable. There’s not much he hasn’t seen at this point and there’s nothing that’ll rattle him after getting run out of New York. After the Cardinals took a 19-6 lead with 4:43 left in the third, Darnold went 12 of 17 for 156 yards with two touchdowns.

• Once again, a #freed Josh Allen supplied an MVP-worthy highlight. You’ve seen the circus play by now. The Bills quarterback throws a slant to Amari Cooper, trails behind the receiver, corrals the lateral and goes full Superman at the pylon. It’s a play you quite literally see in your own backyard snow football games. That’s the power of Allen. Watching the replay, I kept thinking back to two comments from people who’ve always wanted Allen to play so free. First, from a former teammate: “No. 17 is just a different bird. He’s wired different. He’s not like most of these quarterbacks. He wants to make dick jokes and run into people.” This player echoed the sentiment of many others in saying the Bills need to let 17 be 17. Then, there was this from general manager Brandon Beane: “He’s a linebacker playing quarterback. That’s his mentality. You don’t want to strip him completely of that.” It never made sense for the head coach to rein in such a unicorn of a weapon at quarterback. Put the wrong thoughts in Allen’s head and he might think twice before even attempting a play like this vs. San Francisco or the fourth-and-2 dash to the end zone vs. Kansas City. This version of Allen has always been fully capable of winning the MVP award and hoisting the Lombardi. Beane’s in. McDermott’s in. Buffalo has won seven in a row.

• The Carolina Panthers lost in OT to Tampa Bay but Sunday was a massive win for Bryce Young. The beleaguered 2023 No. 1 pick threw for 298 yards, one touchdown and ran for another. This was the smooth operator we saw at Alabama, from the TD strike to Adam Thielen with 30 seconds left in regulation to the two hooking up for the play that should’ve teed up a game-winning kick. (Chuba Hubbard fumbled the next play.) Jim Monos has said it on our Substack Lives the last two weeks, and it bears repeating: Young is outplaying Stroud in 2024.

• Justin Tucker is a liability. Baltimore has lost its five games this season by a combined 22 points. In those five losses, the kicker who used to be automatic from everywhere on the field has missed 22 points worth of kicks. He cost his team dearly again on Sunday, missing two field goals and an extra point in a 24-19 loss to Philadelphia. Head coach John Harbaugh says they won’t make a change at kicker. The rest of the AFC is thrilled by that news. At this rate, he’s going to cost them the season. Maybe he already has. The 8-5 Ravens should at least be 10-3 with a shot at homefield advantage.

• Is it Thursday yet? Packers-Lions will be required viewing for all. We had a feeling the NFC North would be special in 2024, but this? The top three teams are a combined 30-6. I cannot wait to chat with McGinn all about it on the podcast this week. (Rest assured, we’ll get his full Michigan Football Experience, too.)

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