The Jets conclude their tour of the AFC North Sunday when they visit Acrisure Stadium to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers. There are definitely some intriguing matchups in this game as both teams look to get back to .500 at 2-2. Let’s take a look at a couple of them.
Jets running backs vs. Steelers front seven
Sunday could potentially be a very good day for running backs Breece Hall and Michael Carter. The Steelers enter the game sporting the fifth-worst rush defense in the NFL, allowing 142.7 rushing yards per game. This is on the heels of the Steelers finishing with the league’s worst rush defense in 2021. And of course, T.J. Watt is still on injured reserve. If there’s a week for the Jets to improve from their 26th-ranked rushing offense, Sunday is the day.
The Steelers made a change up front in an effort to improve that rating. Montravius Adams is now listed as a starter, taking over for the struggling Tyson Alualu. It should be interesting to watch if the change takes a positive effect for the Steelers.
Sauce Gardner vs. Steelers wide receivers
So far, rookie cornerback Sauce Gardner has not been afraid to mix it up with a team’s top receiving threat. He went toe-to-toe and held his own against Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase in Week 3. This week, he’ll face another very solid group of receivers for the Steelers, including Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool and exceptional rookie George Pickens.
Having D.J. Reed alongside Gardner definitely makes life easier for Gardner as a rookie, but the Jets should have no problem lining Gardner up against any of the receivers all over the field, particularly Johnson, who enters the game leading the team with 21 catches for 196 yards. It will be fun to see how Jeff Ulbrich defends the Steelers’ trio.
Quinnen Williams vs. Steelers interior defensive line
For all the concerns about the Steelers’ offensive line heading into the season, Mitch Trubisky has only been sacked five times through three games. But if there’s a player that can cause disruption of that interior group, it’s Quinnen Williams, who has become the leader of the Jets defense and actually leads the team so far with 1.5 sacks.
Obviously, this week has been very interesting regarding Williams and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich. But perhaps Williams can create some anger and take it out on Trubisky and the Steelers.
Last week, the expectation was that the Jets would be all over Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. That didn’t happen. Maybe with the low expectations of sacks, Williams and the boys will step up and create pressure on Trubisky. It’s bound to happen at some point…right?
