Pittsburgh Steelers @ New York Jets
Final Score: Steelers 34, Jets 32
Writer: Kevan Downs (kdsportsnet on Instagram)
One of the games least expected to be a shootout in Week 1, the Steelers and Jets went back and forth all day, with the Steelers coming up with the win off a 60-yard field goal from Chris Boswell and the defense holding up on the Jets’ final drive.
Three Up
- Justin Fields — Continued to produce with his legs and had a very efficient passing day as well.
- Breece Hall — By far the best looking Jets back today and gashed the tough Steelers defensive front on the ground.
- Calvin Austin — Tied for second on the Steelers in targets today. Looked like he could possibly emerge as the true WR2 on the Steelers.
Three Down
- Kaleb Johnson — Only saw one rush today and was primarily utilized on special teams.
- Broderick Jones — Constantly beat in pass protection. Will be an issue for Steelers runners and Aaron Rodgers until it gets cleaned up.
- Braelon Allen — Posted an inefficient day and was outrushed by Hall 19 to 6.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Quarterback
Aaron Rodgers: 22/30, 244 Yards, 4 TDs
The Steelers’ offensive line is going to be an issue, especially from the blind side with Broderick Jones, but Rodgers still looked composed all day despite the pressure. He spread the ball around, with with all of DK Metcalf, Calvin Austin, and Jonnu Smith receiving at least six targets. He seems to be building trust with Austin, targeting him multiple times on routes deeper down the field. He ended his day with four touchdown passes, connecting with Austin, Smith, Jaylen Warren, and Ben Skowronek.
Missed Opportunities
- Rodgers had a couple passes off-target that should have been easy completions, as well as two deep balls to Austin, one of which resulted in defensive pass interference, and the other being a 50-50 ball after which Austin was looking for the flag to be thrown.
Running Back
Jaylen Warren: 11 Carries, 37 Yards | 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 22 Yards, 1 touchdown
Warren received the majority of the touches out of the Steelers’ backfield with 13, while Kenneth Gainwell had 10. The offensive line didn’t do the run game any favors, struggling to create holes for the running backs. Looks like it might be a bit more of an even split out of the backfield, with the Steelers rolling with the hot hand.
Kenneth Gainwell: 7 carries, 19 yards | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 4 yards
Received the first carry of the game for the Steelers and got nearly equal touches to Warren. Looking like both will receive a good amount of work at least early in the season. Not an efficient day for Gainwell but looked good in pass protection and that will keep him on the field.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
DK Metcalf: 7 Targets, 4 Receptions, 83 Yards
Often being the first read, it looks like Metcalf will be the No. 1 target in this passing attack. Targeted on several types of routes, although not many deep balls. However, dropped a couple passes he should have hauled in.
Calvin Austin: 6 targets, 4 receptions, 70 yards, 1 touchdown
Austin finally looking like he could emerge as the true WR2 on the Steelers, who have lacked one for some time now. Seems to have built up trust with Rodgers who was targeting him in some big moments down the stretch in a tight game. Targeted by Rodgers on several intermediate and deeps throws. Hauled in a contested 50-50 ball. Negatives were a deep target that resulted in defensive pass interference and another where he was looking for the flag after a tightly contested incompletion.
Jonnu Smith: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 15 yards, 1 touchdown
Potentially the most utilized tight end in Pittsburgh this year. He received more targets than Pat Freiermuth and scored on a designed jet sweep. Both tight ends were on the field for much of the game. OC Arthur Smith continues to find ways to get Smith involved, calling up a jet sweep for him which resulted in a touchdown.
New York Jets
Quarterback
Justin Fields: 16/22, 218 yards, 1 touchdown | 12 carries, 48 yards, 2 touchdowns
Fields looked great out there against the tough Steelers defense, both with his legs and his arm. He completed several throws into very tight windows and kept the Steelers guessing in the run game, resulting in him and Hall having big days on the ground. Fields heavily looked at Garrett Wilson, often as the first read, however didn’t seem to be forcing anything to him. Completed passes at every level down the field.
Missed Opportunities
- An unnecessary roughness penalty in the final minute of the first half pushed the Jets back from midfield, costing them a chance to get into field-goal range off of their 2-minute offense.
- Several incompletions on the final drive, including a drop from Wilson after a huge hit from Jalen Ramsey to force a turnover.
Running Back
Breece Hall: 19 carries, 107 yards | 4 targets, 2 receptions, 38 yards
By far the best Jets running back in the opener. He looked great against this Steelers defense and the offensive line helped in creating holes for him. His importance could be seen in the fact that seemingly every time the Jets took Hall off the field to give him a breather, the run game would stall. Hall and Fields are going to make life tough for opposing defensive lines. They were able to play off of each other’s success and create conflicts for defenders. Fields took one of the goal-line opportunities on a QB sneak for the touchdown and converted another for a touchdown from the 2-yard line when the defense sold out to stop a potential Hall carry.
Braelon Allen: 6 carries, 9 yards, 1 touchdown
Allen was very inefficient today and was heavily out-touched by Hall. Only had one quality run, 8 yards that he converted for a touchdown.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Garrett Wilson: 9 targets, 7 catches, 95 yards, 1 touchdown
Wilson was getting open all over the field and was often Fields’ first read. The Steelers’ defensive backs gave Wilson a lot of cushion at the line of scrimmage and the Jets took advantage of it, completing several quick outs against the soft coverage. Wilson was able to get a step on Darius Slay and beat him deep for his touchdown reception. Took a big hit on the Jets’ last offensive play of the game from Jalen Ramsey, which resulted in a drop instead of the drive continuing.
Josh Reynolds: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 18 yards
No one after Wilson was targeted enough to stake a claim to the WR2 on this team.