Mike Tomlin remains undefeated on Monday Night Football at home.
In a crucial December matchup for the Pittsburgh Steelers, one that they needed against an even more desperate Miami Dolphins team, the home team came out on top.
The offense looked good, putting up 28 points and showing some true signs of life both through the air and on the ground. The defense held their own against Miami’s offense and explosive run game. And the special teams had some highlights as well.
This was a massive, massive win for the Steelers in their playoff push. Miami was no push-over team coming into this one; they had won four in a row and were playing for their season last night.
Instead, the Steelers pretty promptly dismissed them. One could argue it was the most comfortable the Steelers have made their fans all season. There’s still a long road ahead for this team, but for right now, they can celebrate the back-to-back wins.
Here’s my five thoughts on this win.
1: The Aaron Effect
For the second week in a row, this was the kind of Aaron Rodgers the Steelers hoped they were getting. It’s mid-December, the Steelers are in the thick of the playoff race, and they need every win they can get. These are the kinds of games you bring Rodgers in for.
Admittedly, the offense started out slow in this one. Their first three drives all resulted in punts, and the Steelers didn’t put any points on the board until 21 seconds left in the second quarter.
But all they needed was one. Rodgers was able to find the right mix of short-yardage plays and the occasional risk to power the Steelers to four straight touchdown drives. He was incredibly efficient, going 23-of-27 for 224 yards and two touchdown passes in the win.
More often than not, he benefitted from the check down and short passing plays. But, when the Steelers needed Rodgers to step up and get a little more risky, he did that as well. He showcased that when he fired a strike to DK Metcalf for a touchdown late in the third quarter.
He also was able to get a completion to Marquez Valdes-Scantling, his old buddy from his days in Green Bay. Elevated back off the practice squad for a second straight week, Valdes-Scantling was left alone on a crossing route for the touchdown, his first of the year.
It was this play that really got the crowd engaged. After the halftime ceremonies for the new Hall of Honor inductees, the Steelers came right out on their first possession and immediately tacked a touchdown on the board.
2: A Win For TJ, Without TJ
Since drafting Watt back in 2017, the Steelers have an all-time record of 1-10 without Watt in the lineup. Their only Watt-less win came three years ago in 2022, when the Steelers defeated Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, on the back of a combined effort by Kenny Pickett and Mitch Trubisky.
But aside from the weirdness of that game, the Steelers have been doomed if Watt isn’t suited up for battle.
Watt had a nightmare of a week, suffering a partially collapsed lung after a dry needling procedure went wrong. Watt was hospitalized late last week and had to undergo a procedure to fix his lung. After being discharged on Friday, he was subsequently ruled out for this game.
However, the defense didn’t skip a beat Monday night. Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig held down the edge spots, helping a unit that threw a ton of pressure at Tua Tagovailoa. The Steelers combined for seven tackles for loss and four sacks, including from unlikely contributors like Jalen Ramsey and Esezi Otomewo, as well as Payton Wilson and Cameron Heyward.
That was a really strong performance from that entire side of the ball. I know they faded a little bit in the fourth quarter, but by the time the Dolphins finally found the endzone, it was 28-3.
It makes you feel a little more confident in the team’s pass rush and ability to create pressure if Watt needs additional time to recover.
3: A Shoutout To Connor Heyward
I know that Connor Heyward is not the most popular guy on the roster, for one reason or another. Some don’t think he has much of a role on the 53-man roster, others believe that he only has a spot on the team because of his big brother Cam. I don’t know how you personally feel about him, but if you spend enough time online in Steelers circles, you’ll get the vibe that he isn’t the team favorite.
But, he made several really good plays in this game.
Heyward has become their primary ball carrier on the Western Pennsylvania version of the Tush Push. With Rodgers standing a good five yards back and acting as the team cheerleader on these plays, it’s Heyward who drives the ball and benefits from the surge behind him.
Heyward had four carries and was a key reason the Steelers were a perfect 3-for-3 in fourth down conversions. One of his carries went for a touchdown, Heyward’s first trip to the endzone since Week 5 of last year.
However, his biggest play might have come on Miami’s onside kick attempt late in the fourth. Dolphins kicker Riley Patterson kicked a spinner towards the camera-side of the field, it nearly ended in disaster for the Steelers.
First on the scene was Adam Thielen, but the ball slipped through his hands as he tried to haul it in. But with Dolphins closing in, Heyward was able to corral it and seal the game for the Steelers.
Given his effectiveness in short yardage plays, and that kick recovery at the end, I don’t think it’s hyperbolic to say that the Steelers might not have won this game without him.
4: Dylan Cook
The offensive line for the Steelers hasn’t been the best this season, but it has been pretty healthy…at least to start the year. Unfortunately, that has been less of the case over the last few weeks. Injuries, including to Broderick Jones and Andrus Peat, forced depth lineman Dylan Cook into action.
Cook had gotten some work in last week, taking 13 snaps for the Steelers during their win in Baltimore against the Ravens. But, the Montana product had never made an NFL start before. On Monday, that changed.
He was barely noticeable, the best possible complement you could give someone in his position. As part of the line as a whole, Cook and the Steelers only allowed three sacks to Rodgers. One of those was on a play where Rodgers intended to go down if there wasn’t an easy throw, and the other two were plays that honestly, Rodgers probably could have gotten rid of the ball on.
At any rate, Cook played phenomenally given his circumstances. He was tasked with protecting a 42-year-old, largely immobile quarterback and to aid in a run game that averaged just 46 yards over their last two games.
On that front, Jaylen Warren played through an illness to put up 33 yards on 12 carries. But it was Kenneth Gainwell that really got the ground game going, racking up 80 yards on 13 carries, including a 38-yard run in there.
5: Some Steelers Symbolism
I’m a big fan of symbolism in sports, and one of those instances involved our old friend Minkah Fitzpatrick.
On that aforementioned Rodgers strike to Metcalf that eventually went in the endzone, the former Steeler Fitzpatrick met him almost immediately in the secondary. But Metcalf put up a stiff arm and threw Fitzpatrick off as he charged ahead, while Fitzpatrick’s former teammate in Calvin Austin came in to add an additional block as Metcalf rushed to the endzone.
Fitzpatrick was a longtime Steeler, after Pittsburgh traded a first round pick to Miami for him in 2019 to salvage their season. Fitzpatrick was a Pro Bowler four of his six in black and yellow, and totaled 18 interceptions while patrolling the secondary.
But this past offseason, after his play started to decline a little, the Steelers dealt him back to the Dolphins for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith. Meanwhile, in that same offseason, the Steelers traded for DK Metcalf to be the new WR1 in Pittsburgh.
In a crucial December game, it was Metcalf, representing the new age of Steelers, throwing down Fitzpatrick, who was a face of the older ages of Steelers.
Fifth Avenue Sports 
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