It feels good to be back.
After a busy, yet long offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers that saw them remodel both sides of the ball, they finally got to see what all the pieces looked like put together when they walked into MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
This game pitted both quarterbacks, Aaron Rodgers and Justin Fields, against their former teams in a Week 1 battle. Both offenses looked dominant at times and have a lot of tape to like. The defenses? Not so much. In a high octane, back and forth shootout, the Steelers eventually pulled out a 34-32 win.
Just like we all expected.
The Steelers found themselves in the rare offensive shootout, and in even rarer fashion, came out on top. They looked like a legitimate NFL offense as Rodgers triumphed over his former team, making for one of the most exciting offensive performances the Steelers had in recent memory.
Now, as always, I have some thoughts. Let’s get into it.
1: Aaron Rodgers Turns Back The Clock
The Aaron Rodgers era in Pittsburgh is officially here. It still looks weird seeing him in a Steelers jersey, I can’t lie.
But you know what was even weirder? Seeing a high-scoring offense.
Rodgers didn’t always get good protection from his offensive line; the Jets registered seven hits on him and sacked him four times. But when he actually had the time to make a play, he usually did. Rodgers finished the day going 22-of-30 for 244 yards and four touchdowns. No preseason reps needed for him.
He hit seven different receivers, including connecting with new tight end Jonnu Smith a team-high five times. His success in the passing game was especially crucial given how hard it was to run the ball against the Jets. Steelers running backs combined for
Most important? No turnovers. Rodgers executed what head coach Mike Tomlin has been dreaming of for years: high-level quarterback play while keeping the ball out of danger. Perhaps it was that confidence in Rodgers and his résumé that allowed both Tomlin and offensive coordinator to open up the playbook more than they did for Fields and Russell Wilson.
Rodgers led the Steelers to a touchdown on their opening drive of the game, something that hasn’t happened since 2008. He is the first Steelers quarterback to throw for four touchdowns in a game since Ben Roethlisberger in Week 10 of the 2020 season. And he finished with a 136.7 passer rating, the highest of any Steelers quarterback since Ben in Week 10 of 2018.
Yeah. I would say he’s a breath of fresh air, at the very least.
2: A Jet Lagged Defense
There were a lot of eyes on this defense heading into this game. First, because of the contract “hold in” by Cam Heyward, who wanted a sweetener in his deal and finally had the issue resolved in an eleventh hour deal Saturday night. And two, because of how Tomlin views said defense.
“We’ve got enough talent, we’ve got enough schematics to do big, big things,” Tomlin said in a radio interview last month. “And when I say big things, I’m talking about historic things.”
Any given NFL season is long, and opinions can change from one week to another. But they have a lot of things to work on after the Jets and Justin Fields cut them up left and right.
Fields was an efficient 16-of-22 for 218 yards and three total touchdowns, adding 48 yards on the ground and running it into the end zone twice himself. He was able to fire some bullets and burned the Steelers on a deep ball to Garrett Wilson, who beat Darius Slay for the game’s first touchdown.
Running back Breece Hall hung over 100 rushing yards on them, Wilsom had 95 receiving yards, and Fields fooled the Steelers on a play that everyone saw coming…but them.
Look, it’s hard enough to buy in on giving multiple defensive players more money, but it’s even harder when said defense has a résumé of terrible performances whenever the playoffs role around, and now starting off like this. They looked horrific today.
If there was one saving grace, it was Jalen Ramsey blowing up Wilson for the game-winning defensive stand.
That play should give the defense a little momentum heading into next week, but make no mistake, they need to be a lot better.
3: A Calvin Austin Breakout?
As one would have expected, DK Metcalf led the Steelers with seven targets and 83 yards through the air. But another weapon that Rodgers found success with was Calvin Austin, who had four catches for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Austin has topped 70 yards in a game just three times in his career, and now has the official WR2 label heading into year three.
His explosive speed has always been a huge asset in the passing game, and Austin took the opportunity to show he can also leap up and make the tough catches, not simply the ones that require running fast.
With undeniably the best quarterback he has played with yet, and an expected bigger role on offense than ever before, could this season be a huge breakout year for the Memphis product?
After watching him on Sunday, I’m very excited to see how the rest of his season goes.
4: Chris Boswell, We Are Not Worthy
Special teams had a very hot and cold day in this one for the Steelers. Poor return coverage often gave the Jets with good field position, but they also were able to force a fumble that eventually led to a touchdown.
One part of the special teams that remained incredibly consistent, though, was kicker Chris Boswell. With ice in his veins once more, he went a perfect 4-for-4 in extra point attempts and knocked in a pair of very long field goals to help propel the Steelers to victory.
But he saved his best work for last, when he picked a terrific time to set a new career long with a 60-yard field goal.
It’s kicks like this that remind us, time and time again, how lucky the Steelers are to have Boswell as their kicker. I think if there was anyone who could ask for more money and not receive fan backlash, it’s him.
This is the third time in the last four season openers that the Steelers have needed some Boswell heroics. In 2022, it was his overtime winner in the dying seconds of the game. Last year, it was his six field that served as the only points Pittsburgh scored in the win. This year, it was putting a 60-yarder through the uprights with less than two minutes to go, eventually sealing the win.
Case in point: when the Steelers win in the season opener, Boswell usually plays a big part in it. He did again on Sunday.
5: Justin Fields Deserves Some Flowers
It was bittersweet for me seeing Fields suit up for the Jets in this one. After all, I lobbied for him to be the guy for the Steelers in 2025, and even though I understood Pittsburgh’s decision at quarterback this winter, I still think Fields has a ton of potential left in him.
If there’s ever a chance for the 26-year-old to finally showcase that, it might just be in New York this year. In his Jets debut, Fields went an aforementioned 16-of-22 for 218 yards and three total touchdowns.
He was great at what we already know Fields can do well: running the ball. He added a new dynamic to a Jets run game that already figures to be pretty decent, and made any short yardage situation almost a guarantee for New York.
But he showed a lot of progression in the passing game, going a long way in disproving the narrative that he’s just a running quarterback.
Look, I know that at the end of the day, his team got the loss. But that arm of his can play, and I think he and that Jets team are going to be better than people expect.
Fifth Avenue Sports 
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