Stealing the AFC North

Pittsburgh’s goin’ to the Super Bowl. Okay, maybe I’m getting ahead of myself, but the possibility of the Steelers winning the AFC North this season is becoming more and more of a reality. But, heading into this season, seemingly everyone counted the Steelers out. So, how did this underdog become top dog in its conference?

By some miracle, 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers has defied the laws of aging. Through Pittsburgh’s first five games of the season, Rodgers has ten touchdown passes, which is tied for ninth most in the league, thrown only three interceptions, and his only game where he had below 200 passing yards came against New England in week three.

After Pittsburgh picked up Rodgers for a one-year $13.65 million deal, most fans and media doubted the oldest quarterback in the NFL. Safe to say, he is proving his doubters wrong, but he’s not doing it alone.

The Pittsburgh Steelers made one of the biggest blockbuster trades of the offseason when they went out and landed star wide receiver D.K. Metcalf. Currently, Metcalf leads the Steelers in receiving yards with 356.

On top of that, Metcalf has four touchdowns through five games, which is tied for the sixth most in the league. However, this is also one of Pittsburgh's downfalls. Despite Metcalf’s dominance, the other receivers have not been able to put up anything close to the stats he has.

The other receivers are getting a similar amount of targets, so if they start to produce, Pittsburgh’s passing game can become one of the best in the league.

A staple of the Pittsburgh Steelers has always been a strong and dominant defense. This season is not different. However, in a shocking turn of events, Pro Bowl outside linebacker TJ Watt is not leading the team in sacks.

That honor goes to the guy on TJ’s right side, Nick Herbig, who has 4.5 sacks on the year. That number puts Herbig in a tie for the eighth most sacks in the league. Pittsburgh's defense is just as strong at the second level, particularly at the linebacker position. Middle linebacker Patrick Queen leads the team in total tackles with 44.

In the secondary, the interceptions are evenly spread out and the team itself has a total of five on the year. In the forced fumbles and fumble recoveries departments, the story is the same. The Steelers have a total of seven forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries.

Offense sells tickets and defense wins championships, but special teams have special players who make special plays. One of these special players is kicker Chris Boswell.

Although Boswell is tied for 22nd in the league for field goal percentage with 81.8 percent, he has the fourth-longest made field goal of 60 yards and he remains perfect on the year in extra point attempts. In terms of punting, Pittsburgh has been the middle of the road in the league.

Punter Corliss Waitman has 17 punts on the year and has the 19th-best average with 47.6 yards per punt. Waitman is tied for the twelfth-longest punt in the NFL at 64 yards, and he has five punts that landed inside of the 20-yard line.

Although there are a lot of strong performers on this roster, a major key of the offense has been a letdown to start the year. After losing running back Najee Harris to the Los Angeles Chargers in free agency, the no.2 back, Jaylen Warren, earned the starting role.

Despite being a modern elusive back, unlike Harris, Warren has been underwhelming so far. Warren is ranked 31st in carries (54) and 40th (184). Along with underproducing in carries and yards, Warren is yet to find the endzone on the ground. If Pittsburgh wants to have one of the most dominant offenses in the NFL, the running game has to be addressed as soon as possible.

When looking ahead at the rest of the season, the schedule gets anything but easier. Not only do the Steelers play the Ravens twice, but they also have to battle against the 4-2 Buffalo Bills before their first matchup against Baltimore.

Other tough opponents Pittsburgh has the task of beating include the Green Bay Packers, a road Sunday Night Football matchup against the Chargers, and a road matchup against Dan Campbell’s Detroit Lions.

Max Malec is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him please email him at mvm7264@psu.edu.