The 2017 Pittsburgh Steelers season has had more peaks and valleys than a roller coaster at Kennywood. The team peaked again this past Sunday, Oct. 15, as they rode Le’Veon Bell, Antonio Brown and Ben Roethlisberger to victory on the offensive side of the ball. What Bell did, specifically, was impressive and proof enough for me that this team needs to continue to feed him the ball on a weekly basis.
More than centering the offense around Bell though, the team needs to play consistent football for all four quarters, something they seemed to have lacked through the previous five games of the season.
In game six, however, against the Chiefs, things seemed to click on all cylinders. I asked myself, other than Roethlisberger not throwing a billion interceptions, what was different about this game? Why did this seem like the most complete one of the season? As I contemplated it for a bit, it hit me. The difference was one man and one man only.
The one. The only. James Harrison.
Harrison plays with a chip on his shoulder every single down he’s out there. He brings a fire to the team that is unmatched. He plays hard. He expects the best from himself and therefore he expects the best from those around him.
It seemed the defense was more intense vs. Kansas City than in weeks past. It seemed like they were on a mission to prove they could be one of the best in the league. Sure, they had a lot of questions to answer after the disaster against Jacksonville, but you know who didn’t play against Jacksonville? Harrison.
Harrison’s presence brings a much-needed quality to the team as a whole; consistency. He’s consistent in everything he does and thus the team around him is as well. He’s a leader, a winner and an unstoppable force.
With Harrison in pads, you’d never know the Steelers were one of the worst defenses against the run in the NFL, whilst playing the league’s leading rusher. Why? Because the team was consistently following their assignments, as Harrison does.
Against Kansas City, Alex Smith was a little more frazzled than normal and unable to get outside of the pocket as he likes to do. Why? The team applied pressure in a more consistent and effective way, like Harrison does.
As the team readies themselves for a visit from their hated rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals, Oct. 22, they must recognize that they need to continue to bring that consistent level of play that they exhibited against the Chiefs.
Though the Bengals are 2-3, and the Steelers are 4-2 and leading the AFC North division, the Bengals aren’t afraid of Pittsburgh. Plus, they’ve had some success visiting Heinz field over the years. The last thing the Steelers need to do now is allow the Bengals, who were left for dead just a few weeks ago, back into the AFC North picture. A Steelers victory on Sunday, Oct. 22 would put a 2.5 game gap between the two enemies, which, if the Steelers were to play consistently the rest of the stretch, would make for a very difficult lead to cough up.
The key however, is to allow Harrison to suit up the rest of the way, and more importantly, to allow him on the field. The Black and Gold have the talent to win the big games, as they just did this past week. They have the skill to do it. They have the leadership to do it. What they need make sure they have on top of it all is consistency.
That starts with James Harrison.
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